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Molecular Life Sciences pp 1–7Cite as

Toll-Like Receptors: Evolution and Structure

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Synopsis

Toll-like receptors (TLRs) recognize a variety of evolutionarily conserved microbial molecules called pathogen-associated molecular patterns (PAMPs) to initiate an intracellular signaling cascade that activates the innate immune response. First identified in Drosophila, TLRs were found to be conserved in humans where they activate the NF-κB transcription factor and thus its downstream targets. To date, 10 human Toll-like receptors (13 in mice) have been characterized and recognize diverse molecules including lipopeptides, viral dsRNA, lipopolysaccharide (LPS), bacterial flagellin, viral or bacterial ssRNA, and CpG-rich unmethylated DNA. Each TLR is an evolutionarily conserved type-I integral membrane glycoprotein consisting of an N-terminal ligand recognition domain (TLR-ECD), a single transmembrane helix that contains approximately 20 uncharged, mostly hydrophobic residues, and a C-terminal cytoplasmic signaling domain, known as the TIR domain. Named for its homology with...

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry, University of California, San Diego, CA, USA

    James Marion

Authors
  1. James Marion
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Correspondence to James Marion .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Chemistry, Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas, USA

    Robert D. Wells

  2. Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Penn State College of Medicine, Hershey, Pennsylvania, USA

    Judith S. Bond

  3. Department of Chemistry Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, University of California The california institute for Quanti, Berkeley, California, USA

    Judith Klinman

  4. Department of Biochemistry, The University of Texas Health Science C, San Antonio, Texas, USA

    Bettie Sue Siler Masters

  5. Dept of Chemistry, University of Richmond, Richmond, Virginia, USA

    Ellis Bell

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Marion, J. (2014). Toll-Like Receptors: Evolution and Structure. In: Wells, R., Bond, J., Klinman, J., Masters, B., Bell, E. (eds) Molecular Life Sciences. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-6436-5_816-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-6436-5_816-1

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, New York, NY

  • Online ISBN: 978-1-4614-6436-5

  • eBook Packages: Springer Reference Biomedicine and Life SciencesReference Module Biomedical and Life Sciences

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