| HOME | HELP | FEEDBACK | SUBSCRIPTIONS | ARCHIVE | SEARCH | TABLE OF CONTENTS |
|
|
|
|||||||
|
|||||||||
-Defensins and LL-37 in the Developing Human Lung1
* Department of Pediatrics, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA 52242;
Department of Medical Biochemistry and Biophysics, Karolinska Institute, Stockholm, Sweden; and
Institute of Biology, University of Iceland, Reykjavik, Iceland
Immaturity of innate immunity contributes to the increased susceptibility of human neonates to infection. The lung is a major portal of entry for potential pathogens in the neonate, and human 
-defensins (HBDs) and LL-37 participate in pulmonary innate immunity. We hypothesized that these antimicrobial factors would be developmentally regulated, expressed by neonatal pulmonary tissues, and participate in neonatal innate immunity. We found HBD-2 to be the predominant -defensin in human neonatal lung. HBD-2 mRNA expression was developmentally regulated, induced by the proinflammatory factor IL-1, and decreased by dexamethasone. Additionally, HBD-2 abundance in neonatal tracheal aspirates increased as a function of gestational age. HBD-1 had a lower level of expression compared with HBD-2 and was induced by dexamethasone. HBD-3 and LL-37 messages were not detected in airway epithelial cultures. Additionally, each antimicrobial peptide exhibited a unique spectrum of antimicrobial activity and salt sensitivity against bacteria commonly causing sepsis in the neonate. Lower levels of HBD-2 may be one factor contributing to the increased susceptibility of premature infants to pulmonary infections.
This article has been cited by other articles:
|
|
 |
|
  S. Menard, V. Forster, M. Lotz, D. Gutle, C. U. Duerr, R. L. Gallo, B. Henriques-Normark, K. Putsep, M. Andersson, E. O. Glocker, et al. Developmental switch of intestinal antimicrobial peptide expression J. Exp. Med., January 21, 2008; 205(1): 183 - 193. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
 |
|
 G. B. Mitchell, M. H. Al-Haddawi, M. E. Clark, J. D. Beveridge, and J. L. Caswell Effect of Corticosteroids and Neuropeptides on the Expression of Defensins in Bovine Tracheal Epithelial Cells Infect. Immun., March 1, 2007; 75(3): 1325 - 1334. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
 |
|
 P. Moskwa, D. Lorentzen, K. J. D. A. Excoffon, J. Zabner, P. B. McCray Jr., W. M. Nauseef, C. Dupuy, and B. Banfi A Novel Host Defense System of Airways Is Defective in Cystic Fibrosis Am. J. Respir. Crit. Care Med., January 15, 2007; 175(2): 174 - 183. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
|
|
S. Elahi, R. M. Buchanan, S. Attah-Poku, H. G. G. Townsend, L. A. Babiuk, and V. Gerdts The Host Defense Peptide Beta-Defensin 1 Confers Protection against Bordetella pertussis in Newborn Piglets Infect. Immun., April 1, 2006; 74(4): 2338 - 2352. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
 |
|
 A. A. Patil, Y. Cai, Y. Sang, F. Blecha, and G. Zhang Cross-species analysis of the mammalian {beta}-defensin gene family: presence of syntenic gene clusters and preferential expression in the male reproductive tract Physiol Genomics, September 21, 2005; 23(1): 5 - 17. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
| HOME | HELP | FEEDBACK | SUBSCRIPTIONS | ARCHIVE | SEARCH | TABLE OF CONTENTS |
