Innate Immunity as an Executor of the Programmed Death of Individual Organisms for the Benefit of the Entire Population.
Int J Mol Sci
; 22(24)2021 Dec 15.
Article
in English
| MEDLINE | ID: covidwho-1572496
ABSTRACT
In humans, over-activation of innate immunity in response to viral or bacterial infections often causes severe illness and death. Furthermore, similar mechanisms related to innate immunity can cause pathogenesis and death in sepsis, massive trauma (including surgery and burns), ischemia/reperfusion, some toxic lesions, and viral infections including COVID-19. Based on the reviewed observations, we suggest that such severe outcomes may be manifestations of a controlled suicidal strategy protecting the entire population from the spread of pathogens and from dangerous pathologies rather than an aberrant hyperstimulation of defense responses. We argue that innate immunity may be involved in the implementation of an altruistic programmed death of an organism aimed at increasing the well-being of the whole community. We discuss possible ways to suppress this atavistic program by interfering with innate immunity and suggest that combating this program should be a major goal of future medicine.
Keywords
Full text:
Available
Collection:
International databases
Database:
MEDLINE
Main subject:
Apoptosis
/
Altruism
/
Immunity, Innate
Type of study:
Experimental Studies
/
Observational study
/
Prognostic study
Limits:
Animals
/
Humans
Language:
English
Year:
2021
Document Type:
Article
Affiliation country:
Ijms222413480
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