title: Cytokines and acute pancreatitis.
abstract: Cytokines have been shown to play a pivotal role in multiple organ dysfunction, a major cause of death in severe acute pancreatitis. Moreover, the two-hit hypothesis of the cytokine-induced systemic inflammatory response syndrome explains the variable individual response to severe acute pancreatitis and the impact of secondary events such as sepsis or therapeutic intervention. Many experimental anti-cytokine therapies have been administered following induction of experimental pancreatitis, and have proved to be therapeutic. Patients with severe pancreatitis present early because of pain. Clearly then a window for therapeutic intervention is available between onset of symptoms and peak pro-inflammatory cytokine expression. It is this fundamental observation that convinces many in the field that the treatment of AP will be one of the first clinical successes for novel drugs or therapy that seek to modulate the inflammatory response.
authors.affiliation: Department of Surgery, University of Liverpool, Royal Liverpool University Hospital, UK.
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Brady
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Christmas
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Sutton
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Neoptolemos
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Slavin
mesh_terms: D000208:Acute Disease; D000818:Animals; D002986:Clinical Trials as Topic; D016207:Cytokines / Q000187:drug effects / Q000378:metabolism*; D006801:Humans; D007093:Imidazoles / Q000008:administration & dosage; D007165:Immunosuppression Therapy / Q000009:adverse effects; D007375:Interleukin-1 / Q000037:antagonists & inhibitors; D007930:Leucine / Q000008:administration & dosage / Q000031:analogs & derivatives; D007962:Leukocytes / Q000276:immunology; D010195:Pancreatitis / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000209:etiology / Q000378:metabolism*; D010972:Platelet Activating Factor / Q000037:antagonists & inhibitors; D011379:Prognosis; D014409:Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha / Q000187:drug effects
chemical_list: D016207:Cytokines; D007093:Imidazoles; D007375:Interleukin-1; D010972:Platelet Activating Factor; D014409:Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha; D007930:Leucine; C103289:lexipafant