Related Experiment Video
Updated: Apr 26, 2026

Dissecting Innate Immune Signaling in Viral Evasion of Cytokine Production
Published on: March 2, 2014
Vaccinia virus binds to the scavenger receptor MARCO on the surface of keratinocytes
Daniel T MacLeod1, Teruaki Nakatsuji2, Zhenping Wang1
1Division of Dermatology, Department of Medicine, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, California, USA.
Abstract:
Patients with altered skin immunity, such as individuals with atopic dermatitis (AD), can have a life-threatening disruption of the epidermis known as eczema vaccinatum after vaccinia virus (VV) infection of the skin. Here, we sought to better understand the mechanism(s) by which VV associates with keratinocytes. The class A scavenger receptor known as MARCO (macrophage receptor with collagenous structure) is expressed on human and mouse keratinocytes and found to be abundantly expressed in the skin of patients with AD. VV bound directly to MARCO, and overexpression of MARCO increased susceptibility to VV infection. Furthermore, ligands with affinity for MARCO, or excess soluble MARCO, competitively inhibited VV infection. These findings indicate that MARCO promotes VV infection and highlights potential new therapeutic strategies for prevention of VV infection in the skin.
Related Concept Videos
Antigen Presenting Cells
T cells require the help of antigen-presenting cells (APCs), which process foreign antigens into smaller fragments that can be recognized by T cells. These APCs are highly specialized cells that efficiently internalize antigens...
Immune Response Against Viral Pathogens
NK Cells
NK cells are a crucial part of our innate immune system, acting as the first line of defense against viral infections. These cells can recognize and kill infected cells without prior exposure to the virus, effectively slowing down the spread of infection. Additionally, NK cells produce proinflammatory...
Antigens Involved in Adaptive Immunity
Complete Antigens
Complete antigens possess both immunogenicity and...
Immunoglobulin-like Cell Adhesion Molecules
Ig-CAMs exhibit either homophilic binding (to other Ig-CAMs) or heterophilic binding (to other ligands such as integrins). While most Ig-CAMs...
Immune Surveillance by NK Cells and Phagocytes
Natural Killer Cells: The Fast Responders
NK cells are large granular lymphocytes found in the blood and lymphatic system. These...
Cytotoxic T Cells-mediated Immune Response
Immunological surveillance is the ability of immune cells to monitor and eliminate infected cells with intracellular pathogens, neoplastically transformed cells, and cells with non-self antigens. Cytotoxic T cells and NK...

