Neutrophil polymorphonuclear granulocytes, the largest population of leukocytes, act as phagocytes within the humanimmune system. They posses a high potential to destroy tumor cells by oxidative and non-oxidative mechanisms. Thesemechanisms, with special emphasis on the myeloperoxidase-hydrogen peroxide-halide system, are described in thiscontribution as well as the defense stra...

Polymorphonuclear neutrophils (PMN) are the first cellular line of antibacterial host defense. They sense pathogens through recognition of pathogen-associated molecular patterns (PAMPs) by innate pattern recognition receptors, such as Toll-like receptors (TLR). The aim of this study was to investigate whether PMN sense bacterial viability and explore which viability factor could be involved in ...

OBJECTIVE To assess the presence of neutrophil and lymphocyte fibrosing alveolitis by bronchoalveolar lavage in patients with early undifferentiated connective tissue disease (EUCTD) and systemic sclerosis (SSc). METHOD Bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) was performed in 13 patients with EUCTD who exhibited signs of lung involvement by non-invasive methods including lung function tests and high res...

We have studied the effects of granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (G-CSF) administration to normal individuals on a variety of functional and biochemical neutrophil characteristics that relate to host defense. G-CSF adversely affected neutrophil (polymorphonuclear leukocyte [PMN]) chemotaxis. While this could be partially explained by reduced assembly of neutrophil F-actin, we also recognize...

Leukocyte recruitment in inflammation is critical for host defense, but excessive accumulation of inflammatory cells can lead to tissue damage. Neutrophil-derived serine proteases (cathepsin G [CG], neutrophil elastase [NE], and proteinase 3 [PR3]) are expressed specifically in mature neutrophils and are thought to play an important role in inflammation. To investigate the role of these proteas...

OBJECTIVE To investigate the effects of preoperative simvastatin treatment on leucocyte-endothelial interactions following coronary artery bypass surgery with cardiopulmonary bypass. DESIGN Double blind crossover study. Experiments on polymorphonuclear cells (neutrophils) were done at the end of cardiopulmonary bypass and one hour postoperatively. Endothelial P-selectin expression and neutrop...

Heparan sulfate proteoglycan associated with vascular endothelial cells in vivo plays an important role in a number of endothelial functions, including the inhibition of intravascular coagulation and extravasation of plasma proteins and blood cells. In this report, we demonstrate that polymorphonuclear neutrophils, as well as cell-free neutrophil supernatants, lead to a rapid and dramatic loss ...

Objective: To investigate the effects of preoperative simvastatin treatment on leucocyte–endothelial interactions following coronary artery bypass surgery with cardiopulmonary bypass. Design: Double blind crossover study. Experiments on polymorphonuclear cells (neutrophils) were done at the end of cardiopulmonary bypass and one hour postoperatively. Endothelial P-selectin expression and neutrop...

The human polymorphonuclear leukocyte reaction in response to chemotactic or chemokinetic stimulation is often assayed using the Boyden chamber technique. We present a quick and reliable method for evaluating Boyden chamber experiments, which avoids time-consuming cell counting and does not require expensive equipment. This method is based on assaying human neutrophil elastase, a serine proteas...