Macrophage (Blue Staining) Engulfing Dead Neutrophils (White Spots) (IMAGE)
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Immunological research at the University of Haifa, Israel, has made a new breakthrough, revealing a critical component in the "decision-making" process of white blood cells that play a role in the healing process from bacterial inflammation. "The process that we have discovered can assist in the development of drugs that are based on the natural processes that take place in the human body, unlike most of the existing drugs that attempt to curb inflammation by artificial means," explains Dr. Amiram Ariel of the Department of Biology at the University of Haifa, who headed the study. The research and its results have been published in the scientific journal European Journal of Immunology. This new study, conducted by Dr. Ariel alongside a team of students led by Dr. Sagie Schif-Zuck, set out to probe the critical stage of the healing process, when the macrophages decide to relocate and adjust their healing activities, moving from local rehabilitation of the damaged tissue to shut down of systemic immune responses at organs of the immune system.
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Courtesy of the University of Haifa
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