Bacterial sepsis and septic shock result from the overproduction of inflammatory mediators
as a consequence of the interaction of the immune system with bacteria and bacterial wall …

The ability of pathogenic fungi to switch between a multicellular hyphal and unicellular yeast
growth form is a tightly regulated process known as dimorphic switching. Dimorphic …

Cells undergoing programmed cell death (apoptosis) are cleared rapidly in vivo by
phagocytes without inducing inflammation. Here we show that the …

Many of the major human fungal pathogens are known to undergo morphological changes,
which in certain cases are associated with virulence. Although there has been an intense …

The β2-integrin receptor family has a broad spectrum of physiological functions ranging from
leukocyte adhesion, cell migration, activation, and communication to the phagocytic uptake …

The ability of a host to sense invasion by pathogenic organisms and to respond
appropriately to control infection is paramount to survival. In the case of sepsis and septic …

Human fungal pathogens have become an increasingly important medical problem with the
explosion in the number of immunocompromised patients as a result of cancer, steroid …

The signature feature of systemic dimorphic fungi–a family of six primary fungal pathogens
of humans–is a temperature-induced phase transition. These fungi grow as a mold in soil at …

Aspergillus fumigatus causes life-threatening infections in patients with qualitative and
quantitative defects in phagocytic function. Here, we examined the contribution of Toll-like …

Membrane CD14 is involved in lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced monocyte activation; it
binds LPS, and antibodies against CD14 block the effects of low-dose LPS. It is unknown …