Introduction

Innate Immunity
The ability of a multicellular organism to defend itself against invasion by
pathogens (bacteria, fungi, viruses, etc.) depends on its ability to mount
immune responses. All metazoans (probably) have inborn defense mechanisms
that constitute innate immunity. Vertebrates have not only innate immunity
but also are able to mount defense mechanisms that constitute adaptive
immunity. This table gives some of the distinguishing features of each type of
immunity.
Innate Immunity Adaptive Immunity

Pathogen recognized by receptors encoded Pathogen recognized by

in the germline receptors generated randomly

Receptors have broad specificity, i.e.,

Receptors have very narrow
recognize many related molecular
specificity; i.e., recognize a
structures called PAMPs (pathogen-
particular epitope
associated molecular patterns)

PAMPs are essential polysaccharides and Most epitopes are derived from
polynucleotides that differ little from one polypeptides (proteins) and
pathogen to another but are not found in reflect the individuality of the
the host. pathogen.

In jawed vertebrates, the

Receptors are PRRs (pattern recognition
receptors are B-cell (BCR) and T-
receptors)
cell (TCR) receptors for antigen

Slow (3–5 days) response

(because of the need for clones of
Immediate response
responding cells to develop —
Link)

No memory of prior exposure Memory of prior exposure [Link]

Occurs in all metazoans? Occurs in vertebrates only

Adaptive immunity employs clonally distributed B and T lymphocytes that are

coated by millions of lymphoid cell-surface receptors, which are generated by
complex VDJ recombination rearrangements so as to specifically recognize an
enormous variety of antigens (specificity and memory). Evolutionarily more
ancient, the innate immune system relies on a much smaller number of
receptors, called pattern recognition receptors (PRRs).

Multicellular animals employ pattern recognition receptors to recognize

pathogen-associated molecular patterns (PAMPs) in order to detect pathogens.
However, cellular stressors are another causative agent of cell and tissue
damage. Cells recognize both stressors and their associated tissue damage via
receptor-mediated detection of intracellular proteins ("alarmins") released by
the lysed cells.

Pattern recognition receptors (PRR) are a class of innate immune response-

expressed proteins that respond to pathogen-associated molecular patterns
(PAMP) and endogenous stress signals termed danger-associated molecular
patterns (DAMP). The evolutionarily more recent adaptive immune response
employs diverse surface receptors that display decremental binding affinities
for epitope stimuli.
In addition to their innate pathogen-recognition systems, vertebrates
(including ourselves) and invertebrates (e.g., Drosophila) secrete antimicrobial
peptides that protect them from invasion by bacteria and other pathogens.
These are discussed below. Pattern recognition receptors, or PRRs, are
proteins expressed by cells of the innate immune system to identify pathogen-
associated molecular patterns, or PAMPs, which are associated with microbial
pathogens or cellular stress. They may also be referred to as pathogen
recognition receptors or primitive pattern recognition receptors in light of
the fact that these methods of immune surveillance have existed long before
adaptive immunity evolved as an immune mechanism.

Contents
 1 Molecules recognized
 2 Classification
 3 Types
 3.1 Membrane-bound PRRs
 3.1.1 Receptor kinases
  3.1.2 Toll-like receptors
 3.1.3 The mannose receptor
 3.2 Cytoplasmic PRRs
 3.2.1 NOD-like receptors
 3.2.2 RNA Helicases
 3.2.3 Plant PRRs
 3.2.4 NonRD kinases
 3.3 Secreted PRRs
 4 References

Molecules recognized( PAMPS)

The microbe-specific molecules that are recognized by a given PRR are called
PAMPs: pathogen-associated molecular patterns Pathogen-associated molecular
patterns, or PAMPs, are molecules associated with groups of pathogens, that are recognized by
cells of the innate immune system. These molecules can be referred to as small molecular motifs
conserved within a class of microbes. They are recognized by Toll-like receptors (TLRs) and
other pattern recognition receptors (PRRs) in both plants and animals.
They activate innate immune responses, protecting the host from infection, by identifying some
conserved non-self molecules. Bacterial Lipopolysaccharide (LPS), an endotoxin found on the
bacterial cell membrane of a bacterium, is considered to be the prototypical PAMP. LPS is
specifically recognised by TLR 4, a recognition receptor of the innate immune system. Other
PAMPs include bacterial flagellin, lipoteichoic acid from Gram positive bacteria, peptidoglycan,
and nucleic acid variants normally associated with viruses, such as double-stranded RNA
(dsRNA) or unmethylated CpG motifs. Although the term "PAMP" is relatively new, the concept
that molecules derived from microbes must be detected by receptors from multicellular
organisms has been held for many decades, and references to an "endotoxin receptor" are found
in much of the older literature.
The term "PAMP" has been criticized on the grounds that most microbes, not only pathogens,
express the molecules detected; the term microbe-associated molecular pattern[1], or MAMP[2],
has therefore been proposed. A virulence signal capable of binding to a pathogen receptor, in
combination with a MAMP, has been proposed as one way to constitute a (pathogen-specific)
PAMP.[3] Plant immunology frequently treats the terms "PAMP" and "MAMP" interchangeably,
considering them to be the first step in plant immunity, PTI (PAMP-triggered immunity), a
relatively weak immune response that occurs when the host plant does not also recognize
pathogenic effectors which damage it or modulate its immune response.[4]

[edit] References
 ^ Ausubel (2005). "Are innate immune signaling pathways in plants and animals conserved?".
Nature Immunology. PMID 16177805.
 ^ Didierlaurent A, Simonet M, Sirard J (2006). "Innate and acquired plasticity of the intestinal
immune system". Cell Mol Life Sci. doi:10.1007/s00018-005-5032-4. PMID 15971103.
  ^ Rumbo M, Nempont C, Kraehenbuhl J, Sirard J (2006). "Mucosal interplay among commensal
and pathogenic bacteria: Lessons from flagellin and Toll-like receptor 5". FEBS Letters.
doi:10.1016/j.febslet.2006.04.036. PMID 16650409. (Free full text available)
 ^ Jones DG, Dangl JL (2006). "The plant immune system". Nature. doi:10.1038/nature05286.
PMID 17108957.

Classification
PRRs are classified according to their ligand specificity, function, localization and/or
evolutionary relationships. On the basis of function, PRRs may be divided into endocytic PRRs
or signaling PRRs.
 Signaling PRRs include the large families of membrane-bound Toll-like receptors and
cytoplasmic NOD-like receptors.
 Endocytic PRRs promote the attachment, engulfment and destruction of microorganisms
by phagocytes, without relaying an intracellular signal. These PRRs recognize
carbohydrates and include mannose receptors of macrophages, glucan receptors present
on all phagocytes and scavenger receptors that recognize charged ligands, are found on
all phagocytes and mediate removal of apoptotic cells.