Sepsis-induced immunosuppression: from cellular dysfunctions to immunotherapy.
Sepsis - which is a severe life-threatening infection with organ dysfunction - initiates a complex interplay of host pro-inflammatory and anti-inflammatory processes. Sepsis can be considered a race to the death between the pathogens and the host immune system, and it is the proper balance between the often competing pro- and anti-inflammatory pathways that determines the fate of the individual. Although the field of sepsis research has witnessed the failure of many highly touted clinical trials, a better understanding of the pathophysiological basis of the disorder and the mechanisms responsible for the associated pro- and anti-inflammatory responses provides a novel approach for treating this highly lethal condition. Biomarker-guided immunotherapy that is administered to patients at the proper immune phase of sepsis is potentially a major advance in the treatment of sepsis and in the field of infectious disease.
Department of Anesthesiology, Medicine, and Surgery, Washington University School of Medicine, St Louis, Missouri 63110, USA.
Richard S
RS
Hotchkiss
Guillaume
G
Monneret
Didier
D
Payen
D000818:Animals; D006801:Humans; D007108:Immune Tolerance; D007111:Immunity, Cellular / Q000276:immunology*; D007113:Immunity, Innate; D007167:Immunotherapy; D007249:Inflammation / Q000276:immunology; D051379:Mice; D023421:Models, Animal; D018805:Sepsis / Q000276:immunology* / Q000628:therapy*