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Introduction Inflammation is the protective response of the living individual to get rid of the cause and effect of injury (microbes, toxins, necrotic tissues). A free-living cell, whether prokaryotic or eukaryotic, must establish structural and functional barrier between its internal and hostile environment. Unicellular organisms (amoeba) selectively admit some and exclude or extrude others. Multicellular organisms protect themselves by different cells to perform different functions. Example: - Storage of nutrients (liver cells) - Communication (neurons) - Contractile activity of muscles (heart) - Synthesis of proteins and peptides from exports (liver, pancreas, endocrine cells) - Absorption (intestine) - Defense against foreign invaders (neutrophils, lymphocytes, macrophages) Visit: Inflammatory cells in acute and chronic inflammation ; Acute Inflammation ; Types of Acute Inflammation ; Chemical Mediators; Chronic Inflammation ; Wound Healing .
Inflammation is described in the Egyptian papyrus (3000BC). In the first century, the Roman writer Celsus described 4 cardinal signs of inflammation (rubor, tumor, calor, and dolor). The fifth cardinal sign, the functio laesa was added by Virchow. In 1793, John Hunter noted that inflammation is not a disease but is a beneficial response of the host. The detail vascular changes in inflammation was recorded by Julius Cohnheim (1839- 1884). In 1882, Elie Metchnikoff described that phagocytes engulf the offending agents to destroy and remove them (hence phagocytes accumulate in inflammation). Paul Ehrlich described that factors in the serum is needed to neutralize the infective agents. It soon became clear that both cellular (phagocytes) and serum factors (antibodies) are important defense against microorganisms. Thomas Lewis established that chemical substances such as histamine locally induced by injury mediate the vascular changes in inflammation. Thus, at the present century, knowledge of inflammation has reached from cellular age to the chemical and molecular age.
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