Pentraxin Mediators in Innate Immune Response
Summary
Pentraxin family proteins are central humoral components of the innate immune system. They comprise short pentraxins such as C-reactive protein (CRP) and serum amyloid P component (SAP), and long pentraxins exemplified by pentraxin 3 (PTX3). These molecules function as pattern recognition receptors that bind microbial moieties and altered self-structures, triggering complement activation, facilitating opsonisation and phagocytosis, and modulating inflammatory cascades. Unlike CRP, which is chiefly produced by the liver, PTX3 is synthesised locally by myeloid and stromal cells in response to pro-inflammatory cytokines and microbial stimuli. Through interactions with complement initiator molecules (for example C1q or lectins) and cell-surface receptors, pentraxins orchestrate pathogen clearance, regulate leukocyte recruitment and polarisation, and influence tissue remodelling. Beyond host defence, pentraxins serve as sensitive biomarkers of infection, sterile inflammation and tissue damage, reflecting disease severity and guiding prognostic evaluation. Emerging evidence underscores their dualistic roles in health and disease, with context-dependent protective or deleterious outcomes. Continued exploration of pentraxin biology promises to inform novel therapeutic strategies for infection, inflammation, cancer and chronic disease.
Research from Nature Portfolio
No recent Nature Portfolio content available.
Pentraxin Mediators in Innate Immune Response publication trend
The graph below shows the total number of articles in pentraxin mediators in innate immune response across all publications each year (not limited to Nature Index journals).
Technical terms
Pentraxin: A family of evolutionarily conserved humoral pattern recognition proteins involved in innate immunity and inflammation regulation.
Pattern recognition molecule: A receptor that binds conserved pathogen-associated or damage-associated molecular structures to initiate immune responses.
Complement activation: A proteolytic cascade that labels pathogens or altered cells for clearance and amplifies inflammation.
Opsonisation: The process of coating pathogens or debris with immune mediators to enhance phagocytic uptake.
M2 macrophage polarization: A macrophage activation state characterised by tissue repair and immunoregulatory functions, often associated with tumour progression.
References
- Inactivation of pentraxin 3 suppresses M2-like macrophage activity and immunosuppression in colon cancer. Journal of Biomedical Science (2024).
- Modulation of diabetes-related retinal pathophysiology by PTX3. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America (2024).
- The Long Pentraxin PTX3 as a Humoral Innate Immunity Functional Player and Biomarker of Infections and Sepsis. Frontiers in Immunology (2019).
- The Long Pentraxin PTX3 as a Link Between Innate Immunity, Tissue Remodeling, and Cancer. Frontiers in Immunology (2019).
- Pentraxins in Complement Activation and Regulation. Frontiers in Immunology (2018).
About these summaries
This Nature Research Intelligence Topic summary is created with the cited references and a large language model. We take care to ground generated text with facts, and have systems in place to gain human feedback on the overall quality of the process in line with our AI principles. We strive to create accurate and useful summaries for people unfamiliar with the research topic and that supports this goal. These pages are a beta release and will be updated as we learn how best to help people gain value from a research topic summary.
Turn complex research questions into confident strategic decisions
When you're under pressure to set direction, justify investment, or understand your competitive position, you need more than raw data — you need trusted insights you can act on.
Benchmark your performance against global peers using robust, methodologically sound analysis.
Combine quantitative metrics with qualitative expert insight to uncover strengths, gaps and emerging opportunities.
Gain tailored, decision-ready recommendations aligned to your strategic priorities.
Talk to us to learn more about our data dashboards and bespoke strategy reports.
Grow research skills, confidence and careers with training built for every stage of the research lifecycle.
Developed with Nature Portfolio journal Editors and internationally renowned experts. Discover three ways to learn:
Self-paced, online courses in convenient bite-sized units, covering key skills across scientific writing, publishing, grant writing, data analysis, and more.
Expert trainer-led workshops with hands-on exercises and real-time feedback across core research skills, delivered via interactive group sessions.
Editor-led workshops combining core principles in writing and publishing, personalised 1:1 feedback from Nature Portfolio Editors and hands-on exercises.
Explore course catalogues and workshop agendas, enquire about the options or request institutional pricing.