PathScan^® Immune Cell Signaling Antibody Array Kit (Chemiluminescent Readout) #13792

The vertebrate immune response relies on both a non-specific, innate immune system and an antigen-specific, adaptive immune response. Organisms rely on cell-mediated and antibody-mediated responses to detect pathogens and protect against infection and disease. Inflammation is an immune response in which circulating immune system cells localize to sites of injury or infection. Regulation of inflammation is essential, as unchecked inflammation can result in permanent damage to tissues and organs. A variety of signaling proteins are known to regulate the immune and inflammatory response.

Akt and p44/42 MAPK (Erk1/2) kinases are key regulators of cell fate that generally transmit growth promoting and survival signals. These two kinases serve as major signal integration hubs and very few cellular processes occur without their involvement. Both p38 MAPK and SAPK/JNK kinases are activated through a dual phosphorylation mechanism in response to pro-inflammatory cytokines, stressful conditions, or genotoxic stress. Caspase-7 is an intracellular protease involved in apoptosis and is part of a cellular sub-organelle called the inflammasome. Caspase-7 is activated by cleavage at Asp198. Activation of the essential immune system regulator NF-κB is triggered by a diverse group of extracellular signals promoted by inflammatory cytokines, growth factors, and chemokines. The proteasome-mediated degradation of the NF-κB/Rel inhibitor IκBα results from phosphorylation of IκBα at Ser32 and Ser36 and targeting of IκBα to the proteasome. The TAK1 kinase responds to a variety of cytokines to regulate cellular kinases and activate the NF-κB pathway; phosphorylation of TAK1 at Ser412 by PKA regulates kinase activity.

Stat family transcription factors are activated by a variety of cytokines, chemokines, or growth factors to regulate the immune response. Phosphorylation of Stat proteins at specific tyrosine or serine residues leads to Stat protein dimerization, nuclear translocation, and binding of the transcription factor to genes that regulate the immune response. The range and specificity of responses regulated by Stat proteins is determined in part by the tissue-specific expression of different cytokine receptors and by the combinatorial coupling of various Stat members to different receptors. Lck, Syk, and Zap-70 are Src family tyrosine kinases that couple the activated B cells and T cell immunoreceptors to downstream signaling events that mediate the immune response. Rig-1 is a Toll-receptor signaling complex component that plays a role in the antiviral innate immune response. The transcription factor IRF-3 plays a role in regulating interferon (IFN) and IFN-inducible gene expression in response to viral infection.