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Review
. 2009 Oct;30(10):475-87.
doi: 10.1016/j.it.2009.07.009. Epub 2009 Sep 24.

Endotoxin tolerance: new mechanisms, molecules and clinical significance

Subhra K Biswas  1 , Eduardo Lopez-Collazo
Affiliations
Review

Endotoxin tolerance: new mechanisms, molecules and clinical significance

Subhra K Biswas et al. Trends Immunol. 2009 Oct.

Abstract

Prior exposure of innate immune cells like monocytes/macrophages to minute amounts of endotoxin cause them to become refractory to subsequent endotoxin challenge, a phenomenon called "endotoxin tolerance". Clinically, this state is associated with monocytes/macrophages in sepsis patients where they contribute to "immunosuppression" and mortality. The molecular mechanisms underlying endotoxin tolerance remain elusive. The recent appreciation of inflammation as a self-regulating process, the relative contribution of MyD88 versus TRIF signaling pathways in inducing activation or tolerance, plasticity of NF-kappaB function and the role of chromatin modification and microRNAs in LPS-induced gene reprogramming urges a re-evaluation of endotoxin tolerance. This review integrates these new findings into an up-to-date account of endotoxin tolerance, its molecular basis and clinical implications in different pathologies.

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