An overview of inflammation: mechanism and consequences

Inflammation is an essential response provided by the immune systems that ensures the survival during infection and tissue injury. Inflammatory responses are essential for the maintenance of normal tissue homeostasis. The molecular mechanism of inflammation is quite a complicated process which is initiated by the recognition of specific molecular patterns associated with either infection or tissue injury. The entire process of the inflammatory response is mediated by several key regulators involved in the selective expression of proinflammatory molecules. Prolonged inflammations are often associated with severe detrimental side effects on health. Alterations in inflammatory responses due to persistent inducers or genetic variations are on the rise over the last couple of decades, causing a variety of inflammatory diseases and pathophysiological conditions.