Scientists have found a group of immune system cells they say resemble James Bond, in that they receive a "license" allowing them to kill invaders.
The "licensing" process apparently helps reduce the chances the cells will erroneously attack the body's own tissues, according to researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis.
They describe the process as being very different from previously identified methods immune cells use to distinguish invaders. The scientists said the new information might have important implications in understanding persistent viral infections, as well as patients' responses to bone marrow transplants.
The scientists said the immune cells they studied, known as killer cells, rapidly attack invaders and are continually generated in bone marrow, leading to replacement of the entire population approximately once a week.
| • | Immune cell actions likened to James Bond
United Press International, Wednesday, Aug. 3, 2005 |
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| Story also ran in 6 others: News-Medical.net (World), Medical News Today (UK), Webindia123 (India), EurekAlert (DC), Science Daily and Washington Times |
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