Toll (gene family)
The toll genes encode members of the toll-like receptor class of proteins. Mutants in the toll gene were originally identified by 1995 Nobel Laureates Christiane Nüsslein-Volhard and Eric Wieschaus and colleagues in the fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster in 1985,[1] and cloned by the laboratory of Kathryn Anderson in 1988.[2] Since then, thirteen mammalian toll genes have been identified.
In flies, toll was first identified as a gene important in embryogenesis in establishing the dorsal-ventral axis. In 1996, toll was found to have a role in the fly's immunity to fungal infections.[3] Both mammalian and invertebrate toll genes are required for innate immunity.
Toll-like receptors in mammals were identified in 1997 at Yale University by Ruslan Medzhitov and Charles Janeway.[4] Concurrently, two separate studies, led by Shizuo Akira, Bruce A. Beutler and their respective colleagues discovered that the Toll-like receptors (TLRs) act as the principal sensors of infection in mammals.[5][6]
The name of the gene family derives from Christiane Nüsslein-Volhard's 1985 exclamation, "Das ist ja toll!"[1] The exclamation, which translates as "That's amazing!" was in reference to the underdeveloped ventral portion of a fruit fly larva. The adjective "toll" is German for "amazing" or "great".[7]
References
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See also
External links
- Toll protein, Drosophila at the US National Library of Medicine Medical Subject Headings (MeSH)
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