title: Platelet-activating factor (PAF) in experimental and clinical sepsis.
abstract: Despite considerable progress in understanding the pathogenic mechanisms of Gram-negative sepsis, the outcome of septic patients has not significantly improved. There are ample data that support a role for inflammatory mediators in sepsis that act in synergy with infectious agents to initiate and propagate the disease process. One such mediator is the glycerophospholipid platelet-activating factor (PAF). The objective of the present review is to summarize experimental and clinical evidence implicating PAF as a mediator in the pathomechanism of sepsis. This review is timely because many potent and selective PAF antagonists have matured for clinical development and a careful analysis of the data that support or refute the merit of clinical trials with such compounds may be important for both academic and pharmaceutical applications.
authors.affiliation: Department of Surgery, Thomas Jefferson University, Jefferson Medical College, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19107, USA.
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Mathiak
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Szewczyk
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Abdullah
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Ovadia
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Rabinovici
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D016905:Gram-Negative Bacterial Infections / Q000378:metabolism; D006801:Humans; D010972:Platelet Activating Factor / Q000502:physiology*; D018805:Sepsis / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D010972:Platelet Activating Factor