I didn't know if anyone had seen this:
RESEARCHERS FIND MASTER SWITCH FOR IMMUNE SYSTEM
Researchers have found a pathway by which a cell regulates
the activity of the “master regulator” of a host of impor-
tant functions, including the response of the immune
system to disease. The regulator is called NF-kB. The pro-
tein is central to numerous biological processes, includ-
ing the production of other proteins that trigger inflam-
matory and immune responses. The discovery of how cells
regulate the activity of this protein sets the stage for
developing improved therapeutic approaches, the authors
said in the journal Science. “These findings reveal a
previously unknown mechanism by which this powerful tran-
scription factor is regulated,” said Dr. Warner Greene,
senior author of the study and director of the Gladstone
Institute of Virology and Immunology in San Francisco.
A chemical reaction called acetylation determines whether
NF-kB is active. When active, NFkB is resistant to the
effects of an inhibitory protein. When inactive, it trig-
gers a chain reaction that turns on certain biological
processes. Drugs that would turn off NF-kB could be use-
ful in the treatment of such diseases as rheumatoid arth-
ritis and chronic inflammatory bowel disease, Greene
said. “These agents could form an exciting new class of
anti-inflammatory drugs,” he said.
Take care and hugggggs,
Lisa
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