Article
Neutrophils in leprosy
Registro en:
SCHMITZ, Veronica et al. Neutrophils in Leprosy. Frontiers in Immunology, v. 10, p. 1-10, Mar. 2019.
1664-3224
10.3389/fimmu.2019.00495
Autor
Schmitz, Veronica
Tavares, Isabella Forasteiro
Pignataro, Patricia
Machado, Alice de Miranda
Pacheco, Fabiana dos Santos
Santos, Jéssica Brandão dos
Silva, Camila Oliveira da
Sarno, Euzenir Nunes
Resumen
LeprosyisaninfectiousdiseasecausedbytheintracellularbacillusMycobacteriumleprae that mainly affects the skin and peripheral nerves. One of the most intriguing aspects of leprosy is the diversity of its clinical forms. Paucibacillary patients are characterized as having less than five skin lesions and rare bacilli while the lesions in multibacillary patients are disseminated with voluminous bacilli. The chronic course of leprosy is often interrupted by acute episodes of an inflammatory immunological response classified as either reversal reaction or erythema nodosum leprosum (ENL). Although ENL is considered a neutrophilic immune-complex mediated condition, little is known about the direct role of neutrophils in ENL and leprosy disease overall. Recent studies have shown a renewed interest in neutrophilic biology. One of the most interesting recent discoveries was that the neutrophilic population is not homogeneous. Neutrophilic polarization leads to divergent phenotypes (e.g., a pro- and antitumor profile) that are dynamic subpopulations with distinct phenotypical and functional abilities. Moreover, there is emerging evidence indicating that neutrophils expressing CD64 favor systemic inflammation during ENL. In the present review, neutrophilic involvement in leprosy is discussed with a particular focus on ENL and the potential of neutrophils as clinical biomarkers and therapeutic targets.