An antimicrobial peptide of the cathelicidin family that provides innate immune defense by killing pathogens and modulating inflammation and wound healing.
Gambichler. T T; Skrygan. M M; Tigges. C C; Kobus. S S; Gläser. R R; Kreuter. A A
Researchers looked at skin samples from women with lichen sclerosus, a chronic inflammatory skin condition, and compared them to healthy skin. They found two antimicrobial proteins, hBD‑2 and psoriasin, were much higher in the diseased skin, while the peptide LL‑37 (cathelicidin) didn’t change much. This tells us the skin’s innate defense is altered in this disease, but it doesn’t give clear guidance for everyday health hacks.
Anderson. R L RL; Hiemstra. P S PS; Ward. C C; Forrest. I A IA; Murphy. D D; Proud. D D; Lordan. J J...
In lung‑transplant patients who develop a lung‑scarring condition called bronchiolitis obliterans syndrome, the innate‑immune peptide LL‑37 and related neutrophil peptides are higher in the airways, even when no infection is detected, while another protective protein (SLPI) is lower.
Dick. Emily Patricia EP; Prince. Lynne Rebecca LR; Sabroe. Ian I
Scientists grew neutrophil cells from bone‑marrow stem cells in the lab and found they look and act like normal blood neutrophils in some tests, but they are much worse at actually killing bacteria because they lack key antimicrobial proteins like LL‑37. This means these lab‑grown cells may not work well as a therapy for infections.
Lee. Dong-Kuk DK; Kwon. Byung Soo BS; Ramamoorthy. Ayyalusamy A
The paper shows that adding cholesterol to lipid membranes keeps the water inside them liquid at much lower temperatures, which helps scientists study membrane proteins like the antimicrobial peptide LL‑37 using low‑temperature NMR. This is a lab‑technique finding and doesn’t give any new advice on how to use LL‑37 for health or performance.
The paper says that LL‑37, a natural immune peptide, belongs to a group called alarmins that can affect how cancers start and grow, but it doesn’t give any clear ways to use or avoid it in everyday health plans.
Samant. Shalaka S; Hsu. Fong-Fu FF; Neyfakh. Alexander A AA; Lee. Hyunwoo H
The study shows that a protein called MprF in anthrax bacteria helps them make special lipids that protect them from the body’s natural antimicrobial peptide LL‑37. When the MprF gene is removed, the bacteria become much more vulnerable to LL‑37 and similar peptides. This is mainly a bacterial defense mechanism, not a new way to use LL‑37 for human health.
Coffelt. Seth B SB; Waterman. Ruth S RS; Florez. Luisa L; Höner zu Bentrup. Kerstin K; Zwezdary...
The study found that the antimicrobial peptide LL‑37, normally part of our immune system, is found in much higher amounts in ovarian tumors and actually makes cancer cells grow and spread faster, while also promoting blood vessel formation and attracting immune cells to the tumor.
Ciornei. Cristina D CD; Tapper. Hans H; Bjartell. Anders A; Sternby. Nils H NH; Bodelsson. Mikael M
Researchers found that the antimicrobial peptide LL‑37 is present in human atherosclerotic plaques and can kill the smooth muscle cells that help keep plaques stable, while immune cells called neutrophils are not affected. This cell‑killing looks like a mix of early membrane damage followed by programmed cell death (apoptosis).
Ooi. Eng Hooi EH; Wormald. Peter-John PJ; Carney. A Simon AS; James. Craig Lloyd CL; Tan. Lor Wai LW
The study shows that a natural antimicrobial peptide called LL‑37 is turned on in the nose when people with chronic sinus inflammation are exposed to certain fungi, but the response differs between two sub‑types of the condition. In regular chronic sinusitis, LL‑37 levels rise with both Aspergillus and Alternaria fungi, while in the eosinophilic form the response is mixed and sometimes goes down. This is mainly a basic science finding about nasal immunity, not a direct health hack.
Staroń. Anna A; Finkeisen. Dora Elisabeth DE; Mascher. Thorsten T
The study shows that the soil bacterium Bacillus subtilis can detect and pump out certain peptide antibiotics, including the human antimicrobial peptide LL‑37, using specific sensor‑transporter systems. It also points out that parts of these bacterial genes could be turned into simple “living sensors” for detecting such peptides in the lab.
Bachrach. G G; Chaushu. G G; Zigmond. M M; Yefenof. E E; Stabholz. A A; Shapira. J J; Merrick. J J;...
The study found that people with Down syndrome produce normal amounts of the antimicrobial peptide LL‑37 in their saliva, even though they have other immune issues. This means LL‑37 isn’t lacking in this group, so there’s no need to target it specifically for oral health in Down syndrome.
The study shows that the natural peptide LL‑37 can make human veins relax by activating a receptor called ALX, which triggers nitric‑oxide and other relaxing signals, but it only works at fairly high lab concentrations and was tested in isolated tissue, not in living people.
Zuyderduyn. Suzanne S; Ninaber. Dennis K DK; Hiemstra. Pieter S PS; Rabe. Klaus F KF
The study shows that the natural peptide LL‑37 can make airway muscle cells release a inflammation‑triggering molecule called IL‑8, and this effect depends on a specific cell signaling pathway. It doesn’t suggest any new health‑boosting use for LL‑37, and may actually worsen lung inflammation.
The study shows that newborns have natural antimicrobial proteins like LL‑37 in their first stool (meconium) and later feces, which help protect the gut from bacteria. Levels of LL‑37 and lysozyme rise after birth, and the overall antimicrobial activity changes as the gut gets colonized.
The study looked at a common newborn rash and found that mast cells gather in the skin and become active, but they do not make the antimicrobial peptide LL‑37. This means the rash’s inflammation isn’t driven by LL‑37 from mast cells.
Huang. Ling C LC; Jean. Daniele D; Proske. Rita J RJ; Reins. Rose Y RY; McDermott. Alison M AM
The study looked at natural antimicrobial proteins on the eye’s surface, finding that one called hBD‑3 can kill common eye bacteria even in salty conditions, while others lose effectiveness when mixed with salt or tears. LL‑37, the peptide you asked about, wasn’t shown to have clear benefits in this eye‑specific test.
Ji. S S; Hyun. J J; Park. E E; Lee. B-L BL; Kim. K-K KK; Choi. Y Y
The study looked at how different mouth bacteria react to the natural antimicrobial peptide LL‑37 and to white‑blood‑cell eating. Some bad bacteria that cause gum disease are tougher against LL‑37 and also avoid being eaten by immune cells, which may help them cause disease.
Scientists used NMR to map the 3‑D shape of a short piece of the human antimicrobial peptide LL‑37 when it sits on tiny fat‑like micelles, showing it forms a helix that lies on the surface and that changing its shape alters how it interacts with membranes.
Donati. Manuela M; Di Francesco. Antonietta A; Gennaro. Renato R; Benincasa. Monica M; Magnino. Simo...
The study tested several natural antimicrobial peptides, including LL‑37, against a pig‑related Chlamydia infection. LL‑37 didn’t work even at high doses, while another peptide (SMAP‑29) showed some activity. For most biohackers, this doesn’t give a useful new health hack.
Kumar. Ashok A; Tassopoulos. Alexander Mark AM; Li. Qiong Q; Yu. Fu-Shin X FS
The study shows that a protein from Staphylococcus aureus (called protein A) can quickly trigger inflammation in human eye surface cells, but it does not boost the body’s natural antimicrobial peptide LL‑37. This inflammation happens through certain cell signaling routes (NF‑kB, p38, ERK) and does not rely on the usual TLR2 pathway.