Department of Infectious Disease & Immunology, Utrecht University, The Netherlands.
Dev Comp Immunol. 2013 Nov;41(3):316-23. doi: 10.1016/j.dci.2013.04.009. Epub 2013 Apr 28.
Toll-like receptors (TLRs) are a major class of innate immune pattern recognition receptors that have a key role in immune homeostasis and the defense against infections. The research explosion that followed the discovery of TLRs more than a decade ago has boosted fundamental knowledge on the function of the immune system and the resistance against disease, providing a rational for clinical modulation of the immune response. In addition, the conserved nature of the ancient TLR system throughout the animal kingdom has enabled a comparative biology approach to understand the evolution, structural architecture, and function of TLRs. In the present review we focus on TLR biology in the avian species, and, especially, on the unique functional properties of the chicken TLR repertoire.
Toll 样受体 (TLRs) 是先天免疫模式识别受体的主要类别，在免疫稳态和抗感染防御中发挥关键作用。十多年前 TLRs 的发现引发了研究热潮，这极大地促进了免疫系统功能和疾病抵抗的基础研究知识的发展，为临床调节免疫反应提供了理论依据。此外，TLR 系统在整个动物王国中的古老保守性使得人们能够采用比较生物学的方法来理解 TLR 的进化、结构架构和功能。在本综述中，我们重点关注禽类的 TLR 生物学，特别是鸡 TLR 组的独特功能特性。
