Pentraxins in the Orchestration of Defense and Tissue Repair during the Acute Phase Response

Microbial infection and tissue damage trigger a complex cytokine-orchestrated acute phase response at the organism level. Acute phase reactants mainly produced in the liver, in general, amplify innate antimicrobial resistance and contribute to tissue repair. The short pentraxin C-reactive protein (CRP) and serum amyloid P component (SAP) and the long pentraxin PTX3 are humoral fluid phase pattern recognition molecules. The long pentraxin PTX3 has been used as a prototypic component of humoral innate immunity. Genetic evidence in both the mouse and humans indicates that PTX3 plays a key role in innate resistance against microbes and in matrix remodeling.