Pathways

Development of a proper immune system requires the selection of lymphocytes expressing a useful repertoire of antigen receptors that can respond to foreign or dangerous antigens but not to self. For T-Cells developing in the thymus, these selection processes include both positive and negative selection of immature CD4 and CD8 cells, helping shape the mature T-Cell repertoire. These processes are[..]

The integrity of genetic information depends on the fidelity of DNA replication and on the efficiency of several different DNA repair processes. Among many types of DNA repair, the general MMR (DNA Mismatch Repair) pathway is responsible for correcting base substitution mismatches which is generated during DNA replication in organisms from bacteria to mammals. The MMR system improves the[..]

OX40 is an approximately 50-kD transmembrane glycoprotein of 249 amino acids, with a 49 amino acid cytoplasmic tail and a 186 amino acid extracellular region. It is a member of the TNFR (tumor necrosis factor receptor) superfamily and has three complete and one truncated cysteine-rich domains. It is a T-Cell activator that is believed to promote the survival (and perhaps prolong the immune[..]

B lymphoid cells are essential for the humoral immune response by producing a diverse range of antigen-specific antibodies. Antibody-mediated immunity is provided by two distinctive B cell lineages that diverge early in life. The better-known conventional, or B2, B cells provide adaptive immunity by producing high-affinity pathogen-specific antibodies, typically in a T cell-dependent manner.[..]

p21-activated kinase (PAK) family of serine/threonine protein kinases are downstream effectors of the Rho family of GTPases (Rac and Cdc42). PAKs are found in most eukaryotes and play an evolutionarily conserved role in many cellular processes like cell proliferation, survival, gene transcription, transformation, and cytoskeletal remodeling (Ref.1). There are six[..]

The actin family is a diverse and evolutionarily ancient group of proteins that provide the supportive framework to the three-dimensional structure of eukaryotic cells. It provides the forces that enable the cell to adopt a variety of shapes and to undertake directed movements. Certain cell types, such as polymorphonuclear leukocytes, monocyte/macrophages, and metastatic cells, are able to move[..]

Phosphatase and tensin homolog deleted from chromosome 10 (PTEN) is a tumor suppressor protein, that is linked to AKT signaling, critically controlling proliferation, survival, migration, energy metabolism and cellular architecture in hematopoietic cells. PTEN is a dual-specificity protein phosphatase and an inositol phospholipid phosphatase that dephosphorylates phosphatidylinositol[..]

Irradiation of DNA by UV (Ultraviolet light) causes lesions, such as Cyclobutane-Pyrimidine Dimers or 6-4PPs (6-4 Pyrimidine Pyrimidone). The most common covalently linked adjoining pyrimidines are T-T (Thymine dimers), T-C (Thymine-Cytosine dimers) and C-C (Cytosine-Cytosine dimers). T-T dimers cause kinks in the DNA strand that prevent both replication and transcription of that part of the[..]