The only human cathelicidin antimicrobial peptide, playing key roles in innate immune defense, wound healing, and modulation of inflammatory responses.
Host defense against intracellular pathogens depends upon innate and adaptive antimicrobial effector pathways. TLR2/1-activation of monocytes leads to the vitamin D-dependent production of cathelicidin and, at the same time, an antimicrobial activity…
Cathelicidins, a group of cationic peptides found in leukocytes and epithelial cells, play a central role in the early innate immune defense against infection. Although these host defense peptides have been reported in several mammalian species, incl…
Cathelicidins are antimicrobial peptides of the innate immune system that establish an antimicrobial barrier at epithelial interfaces and have been proposed to have a proinflammatory function. We studied the role of cathelicidin in allergic contact d…
BACKGROUND: Endogenous antimicrobial peptides participate in the innate defense of skin against a variety of pathogens. The systemic expression of these peptides in normal-appearing skin of patients with infective cellulitis is unknown. METHODS: Stud…
Nine Chlamydia suis isolates, obtained from pigs with conjunctivitis, were molecularly characterized by ompA sequencing and their in vitro susceptibility to six cathelicidin peptides (SMAP-29, BAC-7, BMAP-27, BMAP-27, BMAP-28, PG-1, LL-37) determined…
Recently, we designed a novel cell-selective antimicrobial peptide (TPk) with intracellular mode of action from Pro --> Nlys (Lys peptoid residue) substitution in a noncell-selective cathelicidin-derived Trp/Pro-rich antimicrobial peptide, tritrptici…
The constitutive expression of human cathelicidin LL-37 antimicrobial peptide was achieved using the methylotrophic yeast, Pichia pastoris. An LL-37 cDNA clone was amplified by PCR using human fetal cDNA library as template. The 111 bp fragment encod…
The induction of antimicrobial peptides such as the human cathelicidin, CAMP/hCAP18, by 1,25(OH)(2)D(3) provides a very exciting therapeutic approach in boosting immunity against infectious diseases. To explore the range of cell types and expand the…
In humans, the antimicrobial peptide LL-37 and the potent chemotactic lipid leukotriene B4 (LTB4) are important mediators of innate immunity and host defense. Here we show that LTB4, at very low (1 nM) concentrations, strongly promotes release of LL-…
The emergence of antibiotic-resistant bacteria together with the limited success of sepsis therapeutics has lead to an urgent need for the development of alternative strategies for the treatment of systemic inflammatory response syndrome and related…
PURPOSE OF REVIEW: To review recently published studies presenting novel and relevant information on antimicrobial peptides in gastrointestinal infections. RECENT FINDINGS: Defensins and cathelicidins are important antimicrobial peptides expressed by…
Oral epithelium is a stratified squamous epithelium that functions as the barrier between the outside environment and the host. In the oral cavity, epithelial tissues are constantly exposed to a variety of bacteria, but most individuals maintain heal…
The human cathelicidin LL-37 is a cationic host defense peptide and serves as an important component of innate immunity. It has been demonstrated to be a multifunctional modulator of innate immune responses, although the mechanism(s) underlying this…
Erythema Toxicum, a rash frequently present in the healthy newborn infant is an innate, immune response to the first commensal micro flora. Flushing and urtication are seen in this manifestation suggesting mast cell (MC) activation and MC derived med…
Human kallikrein 1-related peptidases (KLKs) form a subfamily of 15 extracellular (chymo)tryptic-like serine proteases. KLKs 4, 5, 13 and 14 display altered expression/activity in diverse pathological conditions, including cancer. However, their dist…
Cathelicidins are an important family of cationic host defense peptides in vertebrates with both antimicrobial and immunomodulatory activities. Fowlicidin-1 and fowlicidin-2 are two newly identified chicken cathelicidins with potent antibacterial act…
BACKGROUND: The authors tested the effects of LL-37 prophylaxis or therapy on the outcome after intraabdominal sepsis and examined whether hyperthermic preconditioning plus LL-37 therapy augments host immune response and improves survival. METHODS: A…
BACKGROUND: Patients with atopic dermatitis (AD) exposed to the vaccinia virus (VV) smallpox vaccine have an increased risk of developing eczema vaccinatum. OBJECTIVE: To investigate the effects of local allergic skin inflammation on vaccinia immunit…
Human organism, constantly exposed to a large variety of pathogenic microorganisms and their products, such as lipopolysaccharide (LPS), developed innate immunity as a first line of defence. One of the compartments of our organism well equipped with…
Finegoldia magna is an anaerobic Gram-positive bacterium and commensal, which is also associated with clinically important conditions such as skin and soft tissue infections. This study describes a novel subtilisin-like extracellular serine proteinas…