Immunological surveillance

Zinkernagel RM, Doherty PC (1974) Immunological surveillance against altered self components by sensitised T lymphocytes in lymphocytic choriomeningitis. Nature 251 547-548... 

Hickey WF. Basic principles of immunological surveillance of the normal central nervous system. Glia 2001 36 118-124. 

Doherty, P.C. and Zinkemagel, R.M. (1975) Enhanced immunological surveillance in mice heterozygous at the H-2 complex. Nature 256, 50-52. 

Burnet, F.M. (1970). The concept of immunological surveillance. Progr. Exper. Tumor. Res. 13 1-27. 

The canyons are depressions approximately 15 to 20 A deep that encircle each icosahedral five-fold axis (Figure 1). When first seen in HRV 14, these canyons were postulated to be the site at which a cellular receptor would bind. Subsequent electron-microscopic data revealed that ICAM-1 does indeed bind in the canyon as predicted, although in a somewhat different orientation than early models [22,23]. These canyons allow the receptor binding sites to escape immunological surveillance because the canyons are too narrow to allow an immunoglobulin to contact the canyon floor. Directly underneath the floor of the canyon lies a second important structure, the VP1 hydrophobic pocket. 

The precise role of immunological surveillance in tumorigenesis is not well dehned for the majority of malignancies. The occurrence of a unique spectrum of malignancies in immunosuppressed individuals suggests either that immune surveillance is only important in certain tumors or that the duration needed to see an increased incidence of many more common tumors (e.g., colorectal, breast, lung, or prostate carcinomas) is not reached. Suppression of T cell mediated immunity has, however, been unequivocally associated with an increased incidence of certain mahgnancies. In patients with profound defects in T cell immunity the time to tumor detection is often shorter than for cancers induced by other mechanisms. 

Peyers patches are covered by epithelial cells which can differentiate into M cells. M cells play an important role in the immunologic surveillance of the gut and are involved in specific functions like transport of particles, antigens, macromolecules. M cells seem to be involve in the absorption of intact proteins (Walker and Sanderson 1992). Peyers patches have been studied for uptake of macromolecules. Their proximal vicinity to immunocompetent cells is another hurdle for industrial use as a preferred uptake route (Daugherty and Mrsny 1999 Neutra 1998). M cells have been used to study uptake of lectins (for overview, see Daugherty and Mrsny 1999). However both cell types - Peyers patches and M cells - clearly are limited in their use as a preferred uptake route due to a small surface area they are covering and the limited capacity of absorbed molecules. 

Another situation favoring selection of dormant tumor cells occurs in immunodeficiency states. Spontaneous or induced immunodeficiency often increases susceptibility to neoplasia (Kl, M3). However, the results show more variability than can be explained simply by impairment of immunologic surveillance (M3). In humans the excess is largely due to an increase in the frequency of leukemias and lymphomas, except in those immunodeficiency states associated with chromosomal fragility, such as ataxia telangiectasia (P2, S10). 

Gumperz, J.E., The ins and outs of CDl molecules bringing lipids under immunological surveillance. Traffic 7 (2006) 2-13. 

Burnet, F, M. (1970) "immunological Surveillance", Pergamon Press, Oxford. 

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