Nucleic acid sensors activating innate immune responses

Akinori Takaoka

Hokkaido University, Japan

Keynote: J Medical Microbiology & Diagnosis

Abstract :

Pattern Recognition Receptors (PRRs) trigger innate immune responses such as a variety of cytokine induction, through their recognition of microbe/pathogen-associated molecular patterns (MAMPs/PAMPs). In particular, during viral infection, virus-derived nucleic acids are mainly targeted by certain PRRs including TLR3/7/8/9, RIG-I, MDA5, cGAS and so on. This leads to activation of the downstream signalings for the induction of innate cytokines such as type I interferons (IFNs), which confers antiviral activities to the cell. On the other hand, it has been shown that these nucleic acid sensors also detect host-derived nucleic acids during DNA damage induced by radiation and chemotherapy, etc., which may cause inflammatory responses. I am going to talk about our recent data regarding a regulatory mechanism for activation of cytoplasmic nucleic acid sensor-mediated signalings during viral infection and DNA damage.

Biography :

Akinori Takaoka, M.D., Ph.D. graduated from Sapporo Medical University, School of Medicine in 1992, and gained his Ph.D. and M.D. at the same university in 1996. He worked as a post-doctoral fellow and a Research Associate at the Department of Immunology, Graduate School of Medicine & Faculty of Medicine, at University of Tokyo. In this department he was Appointed as an Assistant Professor in 2000 and Lecturer in 2002. Then, he was appointed in a current position to start a new laboratory at Hokkaido University in 2007.

E-mail: takaoka9g@gmail.com