Studies into the physiological reactions of myeloperoxidase (MPO) within the neutrophil phagocytic vacuole

细菌和真菌感染是人类和动物发病和死亡的主要原因。如果我们了解人体通常处理这些感染的方式，我们可能能够加强这些机制，特别是在抗生素耐药微生物越来越多的情况下。此外，由于对微生物有毒的系统也会损害正常组织，这种认识也可以用来限制破坏性的炎症性疾病，如关节炎。保护身体免受这些感染的最重要的细胞是中性粒细胞，它是白细胞中数量最多的。一个关键的问题是，髓过氧化物酶是产生一种有毒分子，漂白剂中存在的次氯酸，还是从白细胞中清除过氧化氢。我们将结合我们在不同科学学科的专业知识来回答这个根本问题。

Bacterial and fungal infections are a major cause of human and animal morbidity and mortality. If we understand the way in which the body normally deals with these infections we might be able to enhance these mechanisms, particularly important as antibiotic resistant microbes are emerging in increasing numbers. In addition, as the systems that are toxic to microbes can also damage normal tissues, this understanding can also be used to limit damaging inflammatory diseases such as arthritis. The most important cells involved in protecting the body against these infection are the neutrophils, the most numerous of the white blood cells. A key question is whether the enzyme myeloperoxidase acts to generate a toxic molecule, hypochlorous acid which is present in bleach, or to remove hydrogen peroxide from within the leukocyte. We will combine our expertise in different scientific disciplines to answer this fundamental question.