ABSTRACT
Bo Zhong studies the regulation of the antiviral innate immunity, inflammation, and tumorigenesis by the protein ubiquitination system.
Subject(s)
Allergy and Immunology/history , Immunity, Innate , Ubiquitination , Virology/history , Animals , China , History, 21st Century , Host-Pathogen Interactions , HumansABSTRACT
Fifty years ago, the first landmark structures of antibodies heralded the dawn of structural immunology. Momentum then started to build toward understanding how antibodies could recognize the vast universe of potential antigens and how antibody-combining sites could be tailored to engage antigens with high specificity and affinity through recombination of germline genes (V, D, J) and somatic mutation. Equivalent groundbreaking structures in the cellular immune system appeared some 15 to 20 years later and illustrated how processed protein antigens in the form of peptides are presented by MHC molecules to T cell receptors. Structures of antigen receptors in the innate immune system then explained their inherent specificity for particular microbial antigens including lipids, carbohydrates, nucleic acids, small molecules, and specific proteins. These two sides of the immune system act immediately (innate) to particular microbial antigens or evolve (adaptive) to attain high specificity and affinity to a much wider range of antigens. We also include examples of other key receptors in the immune system (cytokine receptors) that regulate immunity and inflammation. Furthermore, these antigen receptors use a limited set of protein folds to accomplish their various immunological roles. The other main players are the antigens themselves. We focus on surface glycoproteins in enveloped viruses including SARS-CoV-2 that enable entry and egress into host cells and are targets for the antibody response. This review covers what we have learned over the past half century about the structural basis of the immune response to microbial pathogens and how that information can be utilized to design vaccines and therapeutics.
Subject(s)
Adaptive Immunity , Antibodies, Viral/chemistry , Antigens, Viral/chemistry , Immunity, Innate , Receptors, Antigen, T-Cell/chemistry , Receptors, Cytokine/chemistry , SARS-CoV-2/immunology , Allergy and Immunology/history , Animals , Antibodies, Viral/genetics , Antibodies, Viral/immunology , Antibody Specificity , Antigen Presentation , Antigens, Viral/genetics , Antigens, Viral/immunology , COVID-19/immunology , COVID-19/virology , Crystallography/history , Crystallography/methods , History, 20th Century , History, 21st Century , Humans , Protein Folding , Protein Interaction Domains and Motifs , Receptors, Antigen, T-Cell/genetics , Receptors, Antigen, T-Cell/immunology , Receptors, Cytokine/genetics , Receptors, Cytokine/immunology , SARS-CoV-2/pathogenicity , V(D)J RecombinationSubject(s)
Allergy and Immunology/organization & administration , Societies, Medical/organization & administration , Allergy and Immunology/history , Biomedical Research/history , Biomedical Research/organization & administration , History, 21st Century , International Cooperation/history , Societies, Medical/historySubject(s)
Allergy and Immunology/organization & administration , Anniversaries and Special Events , Societies, Medical/organization & administration , Allergy and Immunology/history , Biomedical Research/history , Biomedical Research/organization & administration , History, 21st Century , International Cooperation/history , Societies, Medical/historyABSTRACT
The 2020 Lasker Awards, a celebration of one of the most prestigious international prizes given to individuals for extraordinary contributions to Basic and Clinical Medical Research, Pubic Health, and Special Achievement, was cancelled because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Typically, essays on the awardees and their scientific and medical contributions are solicited and published in Cell in collaboration with the Lasker Committee. This year, the Lasker Committee commissioned an essay to reflect on the historic contributions that scientists and physicians have made to our understanding of immunology and virology, and future directions in medical and basic research that have been highlighted by COVID-19 pandemic.