Neutrophil extracellular traps: double-edged swords of innate immunity.

Double-Edged Swords of Innate Immunity Neutrophil Extracellular Traps:

New Insights into Neutrophil Extracellular Traps: Mechanisms of Formation and Role in Inflammation

Recent data suggest that NETosis plays a crucial role in the innate immune response and disturbs the homeostasis of the immune system. NETosis is a form of neutrophil-specific cell death characterized by the release of large web-like structures referred to as neutrophil extracellular traps (NETs). NETs are composed of DNA strands associated with histones and decorated with about 20 different pr...

Survival of bacterial biofilms within neutrophil extracellular traps promotes nontypeable Haemophilus influenzae persistence in the chinchilla model for otitis media.

Nontypeable Haemophilus influenzae (NTHi) is a leading cause of acute and chronic otitis media, which are a major public health problem worldwide. The persistence of NTHi during chronic and recurrent otitis media infections involves multicellular biofilm communities formed within the middle-ear chamber. Bacterial biofilms resist immune clearance and antibiotic therapy due in part to encasement ...

Neutrophil extracellular traps: a strategic tactic to defeat pathogens with potential consequences for the host.

Recent investigations have highlighted new roles for neutrophils in the biology of infection and inflammation. Neutrophils are one of the main players in the innate immune system and actively contribute to host defense by killing pathogens. Added to their ability to eliminate microorganisms by phagocytosis, neutrophils can also kill microbes by capturing them in extracellular structures consist...

Activation of the human contact system on neutrophil extracellular traps.

Pattern recognition is an integral part of the innate immune system. The human contact system has been shown to interact with the surface of many bacterial and fungal pathogens, and once activated leads to the generation of antimicrobial peptides and the proinflammatory mediator bradykinin. Here we show that apart from these surfaces also neutrophil extracellular traps (NETs) provide a surface ...