Signal transduction and intracellular events in T-lymphocyte activation

The important role of a novel signal transduction pathway has recently been established in the cellular activation and proliferation of many cell types. The key event in this pathway is the hydrolysis of a distinct membrane-associated inositol phospholipid and the resulting generation of two defined products that act as second messengers in cell activation. Sufficient evidence has accumulated to indicate that this signal transduction pathway plays an important role in T-cell activation. In this article, Noah Isakov and his colleagues review briefly the general characteristics of this pathway and describe in more detail experimental evidence that establishes its critical role in T-cell activation.