In my opinion, Natural Killer cells are the most interesting immune cell in the innate defense

mechanism because they have a variety of functions. They can kill virus infected cells and
tumor cells (Mandal 2014). In 1966, Dr. Henry Smith observed that certain type of cells were
able to destroy tumor cells without having been previously sensitized to them. By the early
1970s, doctoral students were publishing data on the unique nature of these cells. In 1980,
Timonen and Saksela were the first to visualize NK cells and observe their functions. Like
cytotoxic T cells, NK cells can recognize and kill cells that have been infected by a pathogen.
They can also recognize and destroy tumor cells (Mandal 2014). Typically, other immune cells
are able to do this through MHC and antibodies. What I found most interesting about Natural
Killer cells is that they have the unique ability to sense when a cell is stressed and kill it without
having to recognize an MHC or recruit antibodies for help. In essence, NK cells do not need to
be activated to kill a cell that is missing a self marker of MHC 1. This function is important
because harmful cells such as cancers do not display MHC 1 markers are able to escape
detection and multiply. NK fills this important gap in immune function and is able to destroy
cancerous cells. If there is a failure in NK immune function, I expect that cancerous cells will
able to go undetected and transform into a full-fledged cancer. Deficiency in Natural Killer cells
lead to two main diseases: CNKD (Classical Natural Killer Cell deficiency) and FNKD
(Functional Natural Killer Cell deficiency) (Orange, 2013). These diseases are different in that
CNKD is a peripheral blood absence of NK cells whereas FNKD involves nonfunctional NK
cells. A question to consider: Can NK cells be genetically modified in vitro and be used to cure
cancer?
 Works Cited

Mandal, A. (2014, December 27). Natural killer cells: In health and disease. Retrieved April 03,
2018, from https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1658387614001083

Orange, J. S. (2013). Natural killer cell deficiency. The Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology,
132(3), 515–526. http://doi.org/10.1016/j.jaci.2013.07.020