Title: Systems-Level Analysis of the Toll-like Receptor Network of Dendritic Cells
Description: Cells detect and respond to environmental changes using intracellular networks, and defects in the wiring of these networks contribute to diseases. For example, Toll-like receptors (TLRs) sense microbial molecules and trigger pathways critical for host defense. Genetic defects in components of the TLR and other pathogen-sensing pathways have been linked to human diseases. Hence, rational targeting of these pathways should help to manipulate immune responses associated with infections, autoimmunity, or vaccines. A fundamental challenge is to dissect the intracellular networks mobilized by pathogen-sensing pathways. Here we present approaches to dissect the TLR network of innate immune dendritic cells (DCs), focusing on two regulatory layers: signaling and transcription.