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Epithelial hyperplasia and mucosal infiltration of leukocytes are common features of chronic rhino sinusitis. The epithelium can produce chemo attractant cytokines that may contribute to leukocyte infiltration in rhino sinusitis. IL-8 is a chemokine that can be produced in large amounts by epithelial cells in response to a variety of stimuli including proinflammatory cytokines, bacteria, fungi, and respiratory viruses. This chemokine is not only a potent chemoattractant for, and activator of, neutrophils, but it is also chemotactic for some subsets of T lymphocytes. Moreover, IL-8 has been reported to serve as a chemoattractant for eosinophils from subjects with allergic disease. Thus it is reasonable to hypothesize that this chemokine could contribute to the pathogenesis of chronic rhino sinusitis. This article reviews the role of IL-8 in the pathogenesis of chronic rhino sinusitis.
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