Balancing Immunity and Disease: The Dual Role of Nuclear Factor-κB in Cellular Transformation and Viral Pathogenesis

Nuclear factor-kappa B (NF)-κB is recognized as the principal mediator of immunity due to its diverse roles in immune responses. The activation of NF-κB pathway induces the expression of multiple genes containing the consensus sequence that contributes not only to immune response against immediate early infection, but also to gene expression of viruses soon after infection, it engages at considerable steps during oncogenesis, and the adjustment of programmed cell death. Prolonged NF-κB activation is interlinked with acute inflammatory responses without directly driving cancer; however, the pathway also controls the expression of genes that contribute to hallmarks of cancer such as avoiding apoptosis, sustaining proliferation, and enabling replicative immortality.