Natural killer cells in immunodefense against infective agents

Abstract

Following the discovery of innate immune receptors, the topics of innate immunity and its role in defense against infective agents have recently blossomed into very active research fields, after several decades of neglect. Among innate immune cells, natural killer (NK) cells are endowed with the unique ability to recognize and kill cells infected with a variety of pathogens, irrespective of prior sensitization to these microbes. NK cells have a number of other functions, including cytokine production and immunoregulatory activities. Major advances have recently been made in the understanding of the role of NK cells in the physiopathology of infectious diseases. The cellular and molecular mechanisms regulating the acquisition of effector functions by NK cells and their triggering upon pathogenic encounters are being unraveled. The possibility that the power of NK cells could be harnessed for the design of innovative treatments against infections is a major incentive for biologists to further explore NK cell subset complexity and to identify the ligands that activate NK cell receptors.

Keywords::

• hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis
• IL-12
• IL-15
• intracellular bacteria
• killer cell immunoglobulin-like receptor
• natural cytotoxicity receptor
• natural killer cell
• protozoan parasite
• type I interferon
• virus

Acknowledgements

The authors would like to thank all the past and present members of our laboratories for their contribution to the studies on innate immune defense against viral infections. Owing to space limitations, certain studies could not be quoted. We apologize to colleagues for such omissions.

Financial & competing interests disclosure

Supported by CNRS to M Dalod, Ministère de l’Enseignement Supérieur et de la Recherche to N Zucchini, Institutional grants to the Centre d’Immunologie de Marseille-Luminy, and grants by the NIH to M Altfield. The authors have no other relevant affiliations or financial involvement with any organization or entity with a financial interest in or financial conflict with the subject matter or materials discussed in the manuscript apart from those disclosed.

No writing assistance was utilized in the production of this manuscript.