Primary infection enhances neutrophil-mediated host defense by educating HSPCs

Hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells (HSPCs) can give rise to all kinds of immune cells including neutrophils. Neutrophils are the first line of defense in the innate immune system with a short lifespan, due to which it is well-accepted that neutrophils have no immune memory. However, recent reports showed that the changes in HSPCs induced by primary stimulation could last a long time, which contributes to enhancing response to subsequent infection by generating more monocytes or macrophages equipped with stronger anti-bacterial function. Here, we used the reinfection mice model to reveal that primary infection could improve neutrophil-mediated host defense by training neutrophil progenitors in mammals, providing a new idea to enhance neutrophil number and improve neutrophil functions, which is pretty pivotal for patients with compromised or disordered immunity.