Anest. intenziv. Med. 2016;27(2):98-106

Alarmins and their role in perioperative medicineIntesive Care Medicine - Review Article

J. Máca

Klinika anesteziologie, resuscitace a intenzivní medicíny, Fakultní nemocnice Ostrava-Poruba

Katedra intenzivní medicíny a forenzních oborů, Lékařská fakulta, Ostravská univerzita v Ostravě

Alarmins are mostly protein-based substances which, under normal conditions, are localized intracellularly, fulfilling their physiological functions. Currently, the most studied group of alarmins consists of the high-mobility group box 1, heat-shock proteins, proteins S100A, mitochondrial DNA and formylated methionine-leucyl-phenylalanine. In pathological condition, alarmins are released or actively secreted into the extracellular space where they presumably play an important role in activation of innate immunity. A wide spectrum of alarmins has been identified. Alarmins were studied in several chronic diseases during the last decades but there is also an increasing number of research papers concerning their relationship with acute inflammatory conditions, e.g. the systemic inflammatory response syndrome caused by infectious or non-infectious insults. Extensive surgery has some attributes which might lead to the release of alarmins from the injured/damaged tissues. In such cases, the measuring of blood levels of alarmins could bring better understanding of the pathophysiology of surgical trauma, refine its monitoring and improve our ability to predict the clinical outcome of the patients. This issue warrants further thorough studying.

Keywords: alarmins; surgery; immune response; sterile injury

Received: September 29, 2015; Accepted: December 7, 2015; Published: April 1, 2016  Show citation