Toll-like receptor 2 plays a critical role in pathogenesis of acne vulgaris

Acne vulgaris is a common inflammatory skin disease, affecting adolescents across the globe. Recent evidences underline that Propionibacterium acnes (P. acnes) promotes acne through Toll-like receptor (TLR) activation. Especially, Toll-like receptor 2 (TLR2) has emerged as one of the major classes of pattern recognition receptors (PRRs) that are recognizing P. acnes in the epidermis and responsible for inflammation. Although P. acnes has been known to be one of the major causes of acne vulgaris, an appropriate drug to alleviate acne pathogenesis is poorly developed. This review focuses on the molecular structure of TLR2 as well as mechanism how TLR2 recognize P. acnes to induce inflammatory cytokines, which is related to acne vulgaris pathogenesis. Rigorous study about P. acnes mediated by TLR2 activation may provide insight into novel therapeutic targets of acne vulgaris.