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Review
. 2014 Mar 11:5:101.
doi: 10.3389/fimmu.2014.00101. eCollection 2014.

Hyaluronan, a crucial regulator of inflammation

Aaron C Petrey  1 , Carol A de la Motte  1
Affiliations
Review

Hyaluronan, a crucial regulator of inflammation

Aaron C Petrey et al. Front Immunol. .

Abstract

Hyaluronan (HA), a major component of the extracellular matrix (ECM), plays a key role in regulating inflammation. Inflammation is associated with accumulation and turnover of HA polymers by multiple cell types. Increasingly through the years, HA has become recognized as an active participant in inflammatory, angiogenic, fibrotic, and cancer promoting processes. HA and its binding proteins regulate the expression of inflammatory genes, the recruitment of inflammatory cells, the release of inflammatory cytokines, and can attenuate the course of inflammation, providing protection against tissue damage. A growing body of evidence suggests the cell responses are HA molecular weight dependent. HA fragments generated by multiple mechanisms throughout the course of inflammatory pathologies, elicit cellular responses distinct from intact HA. This review focuses on the role of HA in the promotion and resolution of inflammation.

Keywords: CD44; TSG-6; Toll-like receptors; glycobiology; hyaluronan; inflammation; inter-alpha trypsin inhibitor; versican.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Capping of CD44 on leukocytes. (A) Monocytes bind to HA cables (green) produced by M-SMC in response to poly I:C. CD44 (red) is dispersed on the monocyte surface. (B) After 15 min incubation at 37°C, CD44 (red) is capped to one pole on the leukocytes, HA cables appear ragged (center panel) and HA is internalized. (Nuclei are blue).
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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