Nod-like receptor (NLR) signaling pathway

Mammalian cells have evolved a set of specialized pattern recognition-molecules (PRMs) to detect conserved molecular motifs present on pathogens known as pathogen associated-molecular-patterns (PAMPs). NLR proteins (alternatively named NBD-LRR or CATERPILLER) represent one subclass of PRMs that have recently attracted much attention. Their cytoplasmic location differs from the classical PRMs which are mostly membrane spanning receptors (such as the Toll-like-receptors (TLRs) or lectins) and accordingly NLRs were proposed to be activated mainly by intracellular bacterial pathogens.

哺乳动物细胞已进化出一系列特化的模式识别分子（PRMs），用以探测病原体上保守的分子基序，这些基序被称为病原体相关分子模式（PAMPs）。NLR蛋白（又称NBD-LRR或CATERPILLER）是PRMs的一个子类，近期引起了广泛关注。NLR蛋白的细胞质定位与传统的PRMs不同，后者多为跨膜受体（如Toll样受体（TLRs）或凝集素），因此NLRs被提出主要是由细胞内细菌病原体激活的。