Cd8 T Cell Detection of Bacterial Infection: Sniffing for Formyl Peptides Derived from Mycobacterium tuberculosis

Bacteria remain a major cause of human disease and a formidable foe of the mammalian immune system. Bacter-ial entry into normally sterile compartments has long been recognized as a potential calamity for the mammalian host, in the most extreme circumstances resulting in circulatory collapse and multiorgan failure. In contrast to viruses, most bacteria are self-sufficient, producing their own lipid membranes, cell walls, nucleic acids, and proteins. Although many synthetic pathways used by bacteria and mammals are similar, others are subtly different and some are completely distinct. The mammalian immune system has evolved an array of mechanisms to recognize and respond to these distinct bacterial products upon infection. While it has been appreciated for over a century that the mammalian immune system uses receptors to specifically recognize bacterial products and initiate inflammatory defenses upon infection, the last decade has witnessed...