Luke A. J. O'Neill talks with
ScienceWatch.com and answers a few questions about
this month's Fast Breaking Paper in the field of
Immunology.
Article Title: The family of five:
TIR-domain-containing adaptors in
Toll-like
receptor signalling
Authors: O'Neill, LAJ;Bowie, AG
Journal: NAT REV IMMUNOL
Volume: 7
Issue: 5
Page: 353-364
Year: MAY 2007
* Trinity Coll Dublin, Sch Biochem & Immunol, Dublin 2,
Ireland.
* Trinity Coll Dublin, Sch Biochem & Immunol, Dublin 2,
Ireland.
Why do you think your paper is highly cited?
It's a review of a very important aspect of innate immunity—how
Toll-like receptor signal.
Does it describe a new discovery, methodology, or synthesis of
knowledge?
It's a synthesis of knowledge—probably the biggest one in terms of
content published in 2007.
Would you summarize the significance of your paper in layman's
terms?
It describes how a very important family of proteins called the Toll-like
receptors work. TLRs are key initiators of the immune response to
infectious agents. They are expressed on white blood cells, and when they
encounter a microbe, they sense it and then activate the white blood cell
to trigger an immune response. The review describes this triggering
process, giving an account of so-called adapter proteins that mediate the
signal inside the cell.
There is strong interest in TLRs because they are essential for the immune
response, but also become dysregulated in inflammatory and immune diseases.
How did you become involved in this research?
I'd always had a strong interest in signalling in the immune system.
Where do you see your research leading in the future?
I see it leading to further work on the molecular and cellular biology of
innate immunity.
Professor Luke O'Neill
Head, School of Biochemistry and Immunology
Trinity College Dublin
Ireland
Related:
View New Hot Paper comments from Luke O'Neill, November 2002.
Keywords: Luke A. J. O'Neill, tir-domain-containing
adaptors, toll-like receptor signalling, proteins, immune response,
infectious agents, white blood cells, white blood cell, microbe, adapter
proteins, tlrs, dysregulated, inflammatory, immune diseases, immune system,
molecular biology, cellular biology, innate immunity, Immunology.