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Updated: May 15, 2026

Stimulation of Cytoplasmic DNA Sensing Pathways In Vitro and In Vivo
Published on: September 18, 2014
DNA recognition in immunity and disease
Christian K Holm1, Søren R Paludan, Katherine A Fitzgerald
1Department of Biomedicine, Wilhelm Meyers Allé 4, University of Aarhus, 8000 Aarhus, Denmark.
Abstract:
Great progress has been made in understanding how immune cells detect microbial pathogens. An area that has received particular attention is nucleic acid sensing where RNA and DNA sensing machineries have been uncovered. For DNA, TLR9 in endosomes and numerous cytoplasmic DNA binding proteins have been identified. Several of these have been proposed to couple DNA recognition to induction of type I IFNs, pro-inflammatory cytokines and/or caspase-1 activation. Given the ubiquitous expression of many of these DNA binding proteins and the significant potential for endogenous DNA to engage these molecules, it is important that DNA recognition is tightly regulated. A better understanding of DNA recognition pathways can provide new insights into infectious, inflammatory and autoimmune diseases.
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