TLR4
Type: protein Aliases: Toll-like receptor 4
Systems Analogy
An external alarm sensor on the city wall that alerts the central dispatch room when toxic contaminants touch the barrier.
Toll-like receptor 4; a cell-surface pattern recognition receptor that binds to bacterial LPS and triggers the intracellular MyD88/NF-kB pathway, driving inflammatory cytokine expression.
Scientific Sources & Verbatim Definitions
- Empirical StudyKielian T. Toll-like receptors in central nervous system glial inflammation and diseases. J Neurochem. 2006;99(2):347-360. ↗
"Toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4) activation by lipopolysaccharide (LPS) initiates downstream signaling cascades that induce glial activation."