Alarmins and immunity

Alarmins: awaiting a clinical response.

Alarmins are endogenous molecules that are constitutively available and released upon tissue damage and activate the immune system. Current evidence indicates that uncontrolled and excessive release of alarmins contributes to the dysregulated processes seen in many inflammatory and autoimmune conditions, as well as tumorigenesis and cancer spread. Conversely, alarmins have also been found to pl...

Lupus nephritis - alarmins may sound the alarm?

A growing body of literature has documented the elevated levels of the alarmin HMGB1 in lupus skin and serum. Two recent reports highlight the increased expression of HMGB1 in lupus nephritis, within the diseased kidneys or in the urine. Taken together with previous reports, these findings suggest that the interaction of HMGB1 with a variety of receptors, including receptor for advanced glycati...

Antibodies testing, Immunity and immunity passport in Covid-19

The global outbreak of coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) has affected most countries in the world. Our knowledge of diagnostic tests for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is evolving, and it is important to have a clear understanding of the nature of the tests and the interpretation of their findings. In this paper, the purpose is to interpret the results of two typ...

Damage- and pathogen-associated molecular patterns and alarmins: keys to sepsis?.

The concept that sepsis is the result of an uncontrolled inflammatory response of the host's innate immune system towards invading pathogens has recently been challenged. Evidence is accumulating that, in addition, host-derived alarm molecules are released during sepsis- and trauma-associated cell death, thus triggering the host's immune response. The identification and characterization of exog...

HMGB1, IL-1alpha, IL-33 and S100 proteins: dual-function alarmins