Endothelial adhesion molecules contribution to lenkocyte recruitment into inflamed tissues

Abstract

Adhesion of cells to each other and to the extracellular matrix is crucial for multicellular organisms in development and in the normal functioning of the immune system. One of the most studied aspects of cell adhesion is the accumulation of leukocytes in inflammation, an essential process for effective host defense against infection and injury. On their way to sites of antigen challenge (microbial invasion, transplanted tissue, vaccine deposit) circulating in blood leukocytes must adhere to the endothelium lining the postcapillary venules, penetrate the vessel wall and migrate to the site of tissue irritation. At each of these stages, specific adhesive interactions between leukocytes and the vessel wall (and subsequently the extracellular matrix) are important. This sequence of events can be vieved as a cascade reaction similar to the complement and coagulation cascades