Micromanagement during the innate immune response.

The innate immune response can be initiated by the binding of various pathogen-associated compounds or cytokines to receptors on the surfaces of dendritic cells. These interactions result in the activation of many genes and gene products. Several different pathways converge to raise the abundance of specific microRNAs (miRNAs). In particular, activation of the transcription factors AP-1 and NF-kappaB results in an increase in the amount of miR-155. High levels of this miRNA are associated with several types of cancer. However, the mRNAs that may be targeted by miR-155 in the innate immune response remain to be determined.