The only human cathelicidin antimicrobial peptide, playing key roles in innate immune defense, wound healing, and modulation of inflammatory responses.
Colonization of epithelium by microorganisms leads to inflammatory responses. In some cases an anti-apoptotic response involving the cellular inhibitor of apoptosis protein-2 (cIAP-2) also occurs. Although strong expression of cIAP-2 has been observe…
BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: Cathelicidin (LL-37) and human β-defensin-2 (hBD-2) are antimicrobial peptides that have additional functions in innate immunity. The purpose of this study was to evaluate LL-37 and hBD-2 levels in the following patient grou…
Staphylococcus aureus is a frequent resident of human nose and skin in many individuals, but it is also able to cause a variety of serious infections including those of the skin and soft tissue. There is increasing evidence that particularly persiste…
Antibiotics exert several effects on host cells including regulation of immune components. Antimicrobial peptides (AMPs), e.g., cathelicidins and defensins display multiple functions in innate immunity. In colonic mucosa, cathelicidins are induced by…
Recent scientific interest in the pathogenesis of rosacea focuses on abnormally high facial skin levels of cathelicidin and the trypsin-like serine protease kallikrein 5 (KLK5) that cleaves the cathelicidin precursor protein into the bioactive fragme…
Cathelicidins are phylogenetically ancient, pleiotropic host defense peptides-also called antimicrobial peptides (AMPs)-expressed in numerous life forms for innate immunity. Since even the jawless hagfish expresses cathelicidins, these genetically en…
BACKGROUND: Exacerbation of cutaneous wound infections and delayed wound closure are frequent complications seen in alcohol exposed subjects who sustain injuries. We previously reported that acute alcohol exposure alters the early dermal inflammatory…
Azelaic acid (AzA) 15% gel has been available in the United States for slightly over a decade, approved for treatment of the inflammatory lesions (papules and pustules) of rosacea. Efficacy and safety have been established in multiple studies both as…
CCAAT/enhancer binding protein-ε (C/EBP-ε) is considered a master transcription factor regulating terminal neutrophil maturation. It is essential for expression of secondary granule proteins, but it also regulates proliferation, cell cycle, and matur…
Sarcoidosis is a granulomatous disease of unknown etiology most often characterized by pulmonary manifestations. Changes in an innate immune system, involving antimicrobial peptides, have been noted during the course of pulmonary sarcoidosis. This st…
Anthracimycin is a recently discovered novel marine-derived compound with activity against Bacillus anthracis. We tested anthracimycin against an expanded panel of Staphylococcus aureus strains in vitro and in vivo. All strains of S. aureus tested, i…
Accelerating rates of health care-associated infections caused by Clostridium difficile, with increasing recurrence and rising antibiotic resistance rates, have become a serious problem in recent years. This study was conducted to explore whether a c…
BACKGROUND: We have previously shown that, in response to microbial infection, activated Müller glia secrete inflammatory cytokines/chemokines and exhibit antimicrobial properties. The aim of this study is to understand the mechanisms and the key com…
BACKGROUND: Although vitamin D analogs have been used in the topical treatment of psoriasis, their mechanisms of action are not well understand. Calcitriol, the hormonally active vitamin D3 metabolite, has been demonstrated to exert immunomodulatory…
Interleukins (IL)-17A and -22 are involved in the patho-genesis of psoriasis. Cathelicidin LL37 serves as not only antimicrobial peptide but also as autoinflammatory mediator. 1,25-Dihydroxyvitamin D3 analogues, such as calcipotriol, are used as topi…
The pathognesis of psoriasis still remains not fully elucidated. Recent advances favor the idea that interactions between innate and adaptive immune response drive inflammatory process in this disease. Innate antimicrobial peptides and proteins (AMPs…
The porcine cathelicidin PR-39 is a host defence peptide that plays a pivotal role in the innate immune defence of the pig against infections. Besides direct antimicrobial activity, it is involved in immunomodulation, wound healing and several other…
SIC and DRS are related proteins present in only 4 of the >200 Streptococcus pyogenes emm types. These proteins inhibit complement-mediated lysis and/or the activity of certain antimicrobial peptides (AMPs). A gene encoding a homologue of these prote…
Ureaplasma species commonly colonize the adult urogenital tract and are implicated in invasive diseases of adults and neonates. Factors that permit the organisms to cause chronic colonization or infection are poorly understood. We sought to investiga…
hCAP18/LL-37 is the sole human cathelicidin; a family of host defence peptides with key roles in innate host defence. hCAP18/LL-37 is expressed primarily by neutrophils and epithelial cells, but its production and function in the lower genital tract…