[7] STING works as both a direct cytosolic DNA sensor (CDS) and an adaptor protein in Type I interferon signaling through different molecular mechanisms.

It has also been shown that STING is highly expressed in lung, ovary, heart, smooth muscle, retina, bone marrow and vagina.

[12] During intracellular infection, STING is able to relocalize from endoplasmic reticulum to perinuclear vesicles potentially involved in exocyst mediated transport.

[14] STING deficiency in mice led to lethal susceptibility to HSV-1 infection due to the lack of a successful type I interferon response.

For example, animals that cannot express STING are more susceptible to infection from VSV, HSV-1 and Listeria monocytogenes, suggesting its potential correlation to human infectious diseases.

[22] STING-TBK1-IRF mediated type I interferon response is central to the pathogenesis of experimental cerebral malaria in laboratory animals infected with Plasmodium berghei.

[21] STING mediates type I interferon immune response by functioning as both a direct DNA sensor and a signaling adaptor protein.

[13] Mycobacterium tuberculosis has been shown to produce cytosolic DNA ligands which activate STING, resulting in ubiquitination of bacteria and the subsequent recruitment of autophagy related proteins, all of which are required for 'selective' autophagic targeting and innate defense against M.

[8] Cyclic dinucleotides-second-messenger signaling molecules produced by diverse bacterial species were detected in the cytosol of mammalian cells during intracellular pathogen infection; this leads to activation of TBK1-IRF3 and the downstream production of type I interferon.

[8][25] STING has been shown to bind directly to cyclic di-GMP, and this recognition leads to the production of cytokines, such as type I interferon, that are essential for successful pathogen elimination.

[26] DDX41, a member of the DEXDc family of helicases, in myeloid dendritic cells recognizes intracellular DNA and mediates innate immune response through direct association with STING.