Immune Cells and the Process of Pattern Recognition

The innate immune system consists of a wide-ranging repertoire of cell types, physical and physiological processes, and functional effector molecules. The nature of the response produced upon activation of the innate immune system is dependent on how these different components "see" the danger to the host and how they interact with one another to produce appropriate and effective defense strategies. Central to the effectiveness of the innate immune response are multiple cell types including monocytes, macrophages, neutrophils, dendritic cells, and innate lymphoid cells. In this section the basic innate immune roles of these cells have been introduced, along with the underlying principles of the detection of danger through the use of pattern recognition receptors..