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Updated: May 17, 2026

Detecting Migration and Infiltration of Neutrophils in Mice
Published on: February 6, 2020
Neutrophil infiltration during inflammation is regulated by PILRα via modulation of integrin activation
Jing Wang1, Ikuo Shiratori, Junji Uehori
1Department of Immunochemistry, Research Institute for Microbial Diseases, Osaka University, Osaka, Japan.
Abstract:
Acute inflammatory responses are important in host defense, whereas dysregulated inflammation results in life-threatening complications. Here we found that paired immunoglobulin-like type 2 receptor alpha (PILRα), an inhibitory receptor containing immunoreceptor tyrosine-based inhibitory motifs (ITIMs), negatively regulated neutrophil infiltration during inflammation. Pilra(-/-) mice had increased neutrophil recruitment to inflammatory sites and were highly susceptible to endotoxin shock. Pilra(-/-) neutrophils showed enhanced transmigration ability and increased adhesion to the β(2) integrin ligand ICAM-1. PILRα expressed on neutrophils constitutively associated in cis with its ligands, resulting in clustering of PILRα during stimulation with a chemoattractant. Clustering of PILRα enhanced ITIM-mediated signaling, thus modulating β(2) integrin inside-out activation. These data demonstrate that neutrophil recruitment in inflammatory responses is regulated by PILRα via modulation of integrin activation.
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