The role of platelets in defence against pathogens

2011 ◽  
Vol 31 (04) ◽  
pp. 264-268 ◽  
Author(s):  
K. J. Clemetson

SummaryMany more platelets are present in healthy mammals than are necessary for routine haemostasis. Thus, they could have other functions. Platelets have many of the attributes of innate immune function including Toll-like receptors. They also contain a wide range of anti-microbial peptides in storage granules. Platelets play an important role in bacterial infections, both in disease progress and in defence mechanisms depending on circumstances. Similar mechanisms are used in defence against fungi. Platelets are also involved in viral diseases, either in protecting from the immune system or in killing viruses that activate platelets. Finally, platelets have a role in defence against parasitic diseases, in particular malaria, that should not be ignored, and may aggravate some of the worst aspects. Platelets also have receptors for IgE and are implicated via parasitic disorders in development and problems of allergy.

Antioxidants ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (5) ◽  
pp. 759
Author(s):  
David Mantle ◽  
Robert A. Heaton ◽  
Iain P. Hargreaves

Coenzyme Q10 (CoQ10) has a number of important roles in the cell that are required for optimal functioning of the immune system. These include its essential role as an electron carrier in the mitochondrial respiratory chain, enabling the process of oxidative phosphorylation to occur with the concomitant production of ATP, together with its role as a potential lipid-soluble antioxidant, protecting the cell against free radical-induced oxidation. Furthermore, CoQ10 has also been reported to have an anti-inflammatory role via its ability to repress inflammatory gene expression. Recently, CoQ10 has also been reported to play an important function within the lysosome, an organelle central to the immune response. In view of the differing roles CoQ10 plays in the immune system, together with the reported ability of CoQ10 supplementation to improve the functioning of this system, the aim of this article is to review the current literature available on both the role of CoQ10 in human immune function and the effect of CoQ10 supplementation on this system.


2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (5) ◽  
Author(s):  
Marissa A. Guttenberg ◽  
Aaron T. Vose ◽  
Robert M. Tighe

2011 ◽  
Vol 11 ◽  
pp. 2037-2050 ◽  
Author(s):  
Manoranjan Sahoo ◽  
Ivonne Ceballos-Olvera ◽  
Laura del Barrio ◽  
Fabio Re

The inflammasome is an important innate immune pathway that regulates at least two host responses protective against infections: (1) secretion of the proinflammatory cytokines IL-1βand IL-18 and (2) induction of pyroptosis, a form of cell death. Inflammasomes, of which different types have been identified, are multiprotein complexes containing pattern recognition receptors belonging to the Nod-like receptor family or the PYHIN family and the protease caspase-1. The molecular aspects involved in the activation of different inflammasomes by various pathogens are being rapidly elucidated, and their role during infections is being characterized. Production of IL-1βand IL-18 and induction of pyroptosis of the infected cell have been shown to be protective against many infectious agents. Here, we review the recent literature concerning inflammasome activation in the context of bacterial infections and identify important questions to be answered in the future.


2009 ◽  
Vol 104 (3) ◽  
pp. 228-237 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chien-Hua Huang ◽  
Jesus G. Vallejo ◽  
George Kollias ◽  
Douglas L. Mann

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Giuseppe Ancona ◽  
Laura Alagna ◽  
Andrea Lombardi ◽  
Emanuele Palomba ◽  
Valeria Castelli ◽  
...  

Liver transplantation (LT) is a life-saving strategy for patients with end-stage liver disease, hepatocellular carcinoma and acute liver failure. LT success can be hampered by several short-term and long-term complications. Among them, bacterial infections, especially due to multidrug-resistant germs, are particularly frequent with a prevalence between 19 and 33% in the first 100 days after transplantation. In the last decades, a number of studies have highlighted how gut microbiota (GM) is involved in several essential functions to ensure the intestinal homeostasis, becoming one of the most important virtual metabolic organs. GM works through different axes with other organs, and the gut-liver axis is among the most relevant and investigated ones. Any alteration or disruption of GM is defined as dysbiosis. Peculiar phenotypes of GM dysbiosis have been associated to several liver conditions and complications, such as chronic hepatitis, fatty liver disease, cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma. Moreover, there is growing evidence of the crucial role of GM in shaping the immune response, both locally and systemically, against pathogens. This paves the way to the manipulation of GM as a therapeutic instrument to modulate the infectious risk and outcome. In this minireview we provide an overview of the current understanding on the interplay between gut microbiota and the immune system in liver transplant recipients and the role of the former in infections.


2021 ◽  
Vol 12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Miguel Ángel Palacios-Pedrero ◽  
Albert D. M. E. Osterhaus ◽  
Tanja Becker ◽  
Husni Elbahesh ◽  
Guus F. Rimmelzwaan ◽  
...  

Immunosenescence is a process associated with aging that leads to dysregulation of cells of innate and adaptive immunity, which may become dysfunctional. Consequently, older adults show increased severity of viral and bacterial infections and impaired responses to vaccinations. A better understanding of the process of immunosenescence will aid the development of novel strategies to boost the immune system in older adults. In this review, we focus on major alterations of the immune system triggered by aging, and address the effect of chronic viral infections, effectiveness of vaccination of older adults and strategies to improve immune function in this vulnerable age group.


2021 ◽  
Vol 12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alecia M. Blaszczak ◽  
Anahita Jalilvand ◽  
Willa A. Hsueh

The role of adipose tissue (AT) inflammation in obesity and its multiple related-complications is a rapidly expanding area of scientific interest. Within the last 30 years, the role of the adipocyte as an endocrine and immunologic cell has been progressively established. Like the macrophage, the adipocyte is capable of linking the innate and adaptive immune system through the secretion of adipokines and cytokines; exosome release of lipids, hormones, and microRNAs; and contact interaction with other immune cells. Key innate immune cells in AT include adipocytes, macrophages, neutrophils, and innate lymphoid cells type 2 (ILC2s). The role of the innate immune system in promoting adipose tissue inflammation in obesity will be highlighted in this review. T cells and B cells also play important roles in contributing to AT inflammation and are discussed in this series in the chapter on adaptive immunity.


2002 ◽  
Vol 37 (S14) ◽  
pp. 38-42 ◽  
Author(s):  
Takanori Kanai ◽  
Ryoichi Iiyama ◽  
Takahiro Ishikura ◽  
Koji Uraushihara ◽  
Teruji Totsuka ◽  
...  

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