Bad Actors in COVID-19? (IMAGE)

Boston Children's Hospital

Bad Actors in COVID-19?

Caption

Neutrophil extracellular traps (NETs) are webs of DNA and toxic protein that neutrophils release to entrap microbes. But they can also cause blood clots, which may contribute to lung inflammation in COVID-19. This image shows a neutrophil in blue releasing unwound DNA, the backbone of NETs. The dots show proteins modified during NET formation (green, citrullinated histone H4, in green) or released by neutrophils and bound to NETs (myeloperoxidase, in red).

Credit

Lucas de Meglio and Patrick Munzer, Boston Children's Hospital

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