Over the last decade, numerous biopolymers have received more attention in medical
applications involving novel biomaterials because of their biocompatibility, biodegradability …

A complex mucosal barrier protects as the first line of defense the surface of the healthy
intestinal tract from adhesion and invasion by luminal microorganisms. In this review, we …

Our skin is constantly challenged by microbes but is rarely infected. Cutaneous production of
antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) is a primary system for protection, and expression of some …

Once across the barrier of the epithelium, macrophages constitute the primary defense
against microbial invasion. For most microbes, the acidic, hydrolytically competent …

Autophagy allows cells to self-digest portions of their own cytoplasm for a multitude of
physiological purposes, including innate and adaptive immunity functions. In one of its …

Mycobacterium tuberculosis parasitizes resting macrophages yet is killed by activated
macrophages through both oxidative and nonoxidative mechanisms. Nonoxidative …

The skin actively contributes to host defense by mounting an innate immune response that
includes the production of antimicrobial peptides. These peptides, which include but are not …

Ubiquitin is one of the most highly conserved proteins in eukaryotes and plays major
biological roles as a post-translational protein modifier. Ubiquitin is also a natural constituent …

Oysters are sessile filter feeders that live in close association with abundant and diverse
communities of microorganisms that form the oyster microbiota. In such an association …

Autophagy is a physiologically and immunologically controlled intracellular homeostatic
pathway that sequesters and degrades cytoplasmic targets including macromolecular …