Related Experiment Video
Updated: Mar 17, 2026

Teasing Out the Interplay Between Natural Killer Cells and Nociceptor Neurons
Published on: June 30, 2022
Current perspectives on natural killer cell education and tolerance: emerging roles for inhibitory receptors
1Laboratory of Immunogenetics, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Rockville, MD, USA.
Abstract:
Natural killer (NK) cells are regulated through the coordinated functions of activating and inhibitory receptors. These receptors can act during the initial engagement of an NK cell with a target cell, or in subsequent NK cell engagements to maintain tolerance. Notably, each individual possesses a sizable minority-population of NK cells that are devoid of inhibitory receptors that recognize the surrounding MHC class I (ie, self-MHC). Since these NK cells cannot perform conventional inhibition, they are rendered less responsive through the process of NK cell education (also known as licensing) in order to reduce the likelihood of auto-reactivity. This review will delineate current views on NK cell education, clarify various misconceptions about NK cell education, and, lastly, discuss the relevance of NK cell education in anti-cancer therapies.
More Related Videos
06:55Measurement of Natural Killer Cell-Mediated Cytotoxicity and Migration in the Context of Hepatic Tumor Cells
Published on: February 22, 2020
05:24Two Flow Cytometric Approaches of NKG2D Ligand Surface Detection to Distinguish Stem Cells from Bulk Subpopulations in Acute Myeloid Leukemia
Published on: February 21, 2021
Related Concept Videos
Cells of the Innate Immune Response
Phagocytes
Phagocytes police the peripheral tissues by removing cellular debris and responding to the invasion of foreign substances or pathogens. Many phagocytes attack and remove microorganisms even before lymphocytes detect them. The human body has two general...
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...
Special Features of Adaptive Immunity
The primary cell types involved in adaptive immunity are T cells and B cells. Each type has a unique role in defending the body against pathogens. T cells are responsible for cell-mediated immunity. They identify and eliminate infected cells directly,...
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...
T Cell Activation and Clonal Selection
Naive T cells that have not yet encountered an antigen express two primary CD...
T Cell Types and Functions
Th1 cells stimulate dendritic cells to express necessary co-stimulatory molecules on their surfaces for...