Function
The protein encoded by this gene is a member of the Toll-like receptor (TLR) family which plays a fundamental role in pathogen recognition and activation of innate immunity. TLRs are highly conserved from Drosophila to humans and share structural and functional similarities. They recognize pathogen-associated molecular patterns (PAMPs) that are expressed on infectious agents, and mediate the production of cytokines necessary for the development of effective immunity. The various TLRs exhibit different patterns of expression. This gene product is expressed in myelomonocytic cells, and recognizes bacterial flagellin, a principal component of bacterial flagella and a virulence factor. The activation of this receptor mobilizes the nuclear factor NF-κB and stimulates tumor necrosis factor-alpha production.
TLR5 recognizes flagellin. Flagellin is the protein monomer that makes up the filament of bacterial flagella, found on nearly all motile bacteria. There are highly conserved regions in the flagellin protein among all bacteria, facilitating the recognition of flagellin by a germ-line encoded receptor such as TLR5.
Read more about this topic: TLR 5
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