Nuclear factor-κB

Nuclear factor-κB (NF-κB) is a ubiquitous transcription factor that, by regulating the expression of multiple inflammatory and immune genes, plays a critical role in host defence and in chronic inflammatory diseases. It is a heterodimer, present in the cytoplasm in an inactive form complexed to an inhibitory protein, IκB. Many extracellular stimuli, including viruses, oxidants, inflammatory cytokines and immune stimuli, activate NF-κB. Once...