Natural killer cytotoxicity pathway

The natural killer cytotoxicity pathway is the collection of molecular mechanisms by which natural killer (NK) cells identify and destroy abnormal cells, such as cancerous or infected cells. This involves multiple activating and inhibitory surface receptors on NK cells (e.g., natural cytotoxicity receptors, NKG2D, KIRs), complex signaling cascades (involving molecules like DAP10, DAP12, PI3K, Vav1, MAPK), immunological synapse formation, and subsequent exocytosis of cytotoxic granules containing perforin and granzymes leading to apoptosis of the target cell[1][3][4][5][7][8]. Additionally, death receptor pathways (such as Fas/FasL and TRAIL/TRAIL-R interactions) contribute to NK-mediated killing[1][8]. The "pathway" is not a discrete molecule but a regulated sequence of events across a network of interacting proteins. Key point: If you need information about a specific molecule in this pathway (e.g., NCR1 [NKp46], NKG2D, or CD16), you should specify that molecule or receptor. The term "Natural killer cytotoxicity pathway" itself is too broad for mapping to a single canonical target.

Other names

Natural killer cell cytotoxicityNK cell cytotoxicityNK cytotoxic pathwayNatural killer cell-mediated cytotoxicity