NEUTROPHILS AND SYSTEMIC INFLAMMATORY RESPONSE SYNDROME

Abstract

The paper summarizes the data available in the literature on the mechanisms responsible for the priming and activation of neutrophils circulating in the blood bed and on the adhesion and nonadhesion mechanisms of neutrophil-endothelium interactions and describes their role in the occurrence of systemic inflammatory response syndrome. The interaction of circulating neutrophils with the activated endothelium is the central event during inflammation. It includes diverse molecular events associated with neutrophil adhesion and migration and with impaired endothelial permeability. The simultaneous overactivation of the endothelium and neutrophils may give rise to endothelial damage caused by adherent neutrophils. The cytotoxic neutrophil-endothelium interaction makes a considerable contribution to the pathogenesis of vascular and tissue injuries in circulatory disturbances and if the systemic inflammatory response syndrome develops. Impaired neutrophil migration and phagocytosis in systemic inflammatory response syndrome, the association of these impairments with neutrophil priming and activation, and the clinical value of these indicators are discussed.