Alternative definition : KEGG: Specific families of pattern recognition receptors are responsible for detecting
various pathogens and generating innate immune responses. The intracellular NOD-like
receptor (NLR) family contains more than 20 members in mammals and plays a pivotal
role in the recognition of intracellular ligands. NOD1 and NOD2, two prototypic NLRs,
sense the cytosolic presence of the bacterial peptidoglycan fragments that escaped
from endosomal compartments, driving the activation of NF-kappa-B and MAPK, cytokine
production and apoptosis. On the other hand, a different set of NLRs induces caspase-1
activation through the assembly of multiprotein complexes called inflammasomes. These
NLRs include NALP1, NALP3 and Ipaf. The inflammasomes are critical for generating
mature proinflammatory cytokines in concert with Toll-like receptor signaling pathway.;