Washington, Dec. 28: Our immune system has an effective backup plan to protect the body from infection when its master switch fails, says a new study.
A molecule known as nuclear factor kappa B (NF-κB) has been regarded as the master switch of the body’s immune response, receiving signals of injury or infection and activating genes for microbial killing and inflammation.
Michael Karin, professor of pharmacology at the University of California, San Diego, led a team to study the immune function of lab mice which were genetically deprived of the NF-κB molecule, according to a California statement.
“Researchers discovered that loss of NF-κB caused mice to produce a potent immune-activating molecule known as interleukin-1 beta (IL-1β), which stimulated their bone marrow to produce dramatically increased numbers of white blood cells known as neutrophils,” said Prof Karin.
Neutrophils are the body’s front-line defenders against infection. The new research demonstrates that the innate immune system deploys two effective strategies to deal with invasive bacterial infection.