The innate immune system is an evolutionarily ancient system that depends on key sentinel cells such as dendritic cells (DCs), macrophages, neutrophils and mast cells to provide the first line of defense against pathogenic microbes. Signalling defects within the innate immune system may result in immunodeficiency characterized by the inability to clear infections, while excessive or inappropriate activation of innate immune cells, can lead to devastating acute or chronic inflammatory diseases such as sepsis, rheumatoid arthritis, asthma, COPD and inflammatory bowel disease.
