An efficient defense against invading pathogenic microorganisms is achieved through coordination of a complex network of both innate and acquired immune responses. The first step for the elimination of a pathogenic bacterium or virus is reliable detection, a complex task due to both variation and evolution of the pathogenic microorganisms. In order to achieve this goal, the innate immune system...

Polymers based on 2-acrylamido-2-methyl-1-propanesulfonic acid (AMPS) attract significant attention due to their large water absorption capacity when swollen in water. Poly(AMPS) (PAMPS) hydrogels are usually synthesized via free-radical cross-linking copolymerization of AMPS and a chemical cross-linker aqueous solutions. Owing the covalently cross-linked network structure PAMPS preventing diss...

The innate immune system evolved to recognize conserved microbial products, termed pathogen-associated molecular patterns (PAMPs), which are invariant among diverse groups of microorganisms. PAMPs are recognized by a set of germ-line encoded pattern recognition receptors (PRRs). Among the best characterized PAMPs are bacterial lipopolysaccharide (LPS), peptidoglycan (PGN), mannans, and other co...

Pathogen-associated molecular patterns (PAMPs) elicit basal defense responses in plants, and, in turn, pathogens have evolved mechanisms to overcome these PAMP-induced defenses. To suppress immunity, the phytopathogenic bacterium Pseudomonas syringae secretes effector proteins, the biochemical function and virulence targets of which remain largely unknown. We show that HopAI1, an effector widel...

Biliary innate immunity is involved in the pathogenesis of cholangiopathies in cases of biliary disease. Cholangiocytes possess Toll-like receptors (TLRs) which recognize pathogen-associated molecular patterns (PAMPs) and play a pivotal role in the innate immune response. Tolerance to bacterial PAMPs such as lipopolysaccharides is also important to maintain homeostasis in the biliary tree, but ...

Toll-like receptors (TLR) recognize the pathogen-associated molecular patterns (PAMPs) and regulate the subsequent immune responses in mammals. We have so far succeeded in finding the 11 types of TLR genes from Japanese flounder (Paralichthys olivaceus). TLR genes have also been found in the genomes of fugu (Takifugu rubripes) and zebrafish (Danio rerio). However, only limited information is kn...

In order to establish an infection, viruses need to either suppress or escape from host immune defense systems. Recent immunological research has focused on innate immunity as the first line of host defense, especially pattern recognition molecules such as Toll-like receptors (TLRs), RIG-I-like receptors (RLRs), and NOD-like receptors (NLRs). Various microbial components are recognized by their...

The innate immune sensors, Toll-like receptors (TLRs) and nucleotide-binding oligomerization domain (NOD)-like receptors (NLRs), can recognize not only exogenous pathogen-associated molecular patterns (PAMPs), but also endogenous molecules created upon tissue injury, sterile inflammation, and degeneration. Endogenous ligands are called damage-associated molecular patterns (DAMPs), and include e...

In this paper, we firstly reported a C-type lectin cDNA clone of 1029 bps from the larvae of A. Pernyi (Ap-CTL) using PCR and RACE techniques. The full-length cDNA contains an open reading frame encoding 308 amino acid residues which has two different carbohydrate-recognition domains (CRDs) arranged in tandem. To investigate the biological activities in the innate immunity, recombinant Ap-CTL w...