Jane Harper writes:
> I'd love to hear what the folks in this newsgroup
> feel are the pivotal discoveries that have occurred _outside_ HIV
> research have been for, say the past 15 years.
>> Any takers?
I would list the following as an "Immunology Top Ten":
(IMHO, of course)
in no particular order,
1) "The Groove"- MHC structure and peptide binding site
2) The Immunoglobulin superfamily as a general structural model
for receptors
3) Structure of the T-cell receptor (and associated CD3)
4) Gene rearrangment as the mechanism for generation of diversity
5) Mechanism of Superantigens
6) Role of Cell Adhesion Molecules in leucocyte extravasation
7) Signal transduction models for B and T cells (Ca++, IP3, tyr-p)
and related identification of many tumor genes (myc, fyn, etc)
8) NF-kappaB/AP-1 and other related molecules in
transcriptional regulation
9) Deletion of self-reactive TCR in the thymus as the mechanism
for central tolerance
10) Positive selection as the mechanism behind MHC-restriction
Note that I intentionally left out methods (Western Blotting,
Flourescent Cell Sorting, PCR, Transgenics), clinical advances, and
discoveries which have more interdisciplinary implications (such as
apoptosis). I'm sure I left out many favorites of others- care to
post your own top ten? How about the top ten as determined by current
citations? Any speculation on the top ten "unknowns" still plaguing
iimunologists?
*********************************************************************
Dean Lee * We dance 'round in a ring *
Dept of Micro and Mol Genetics * and suppose, *
Loma Linda University * But the secret sits in the middle *
dLee at ccmail.llu.edu * and knows. R. Frost *
*********************************************************************
