Immune & Thymic
LL-37
Also published as Cathelicidin antimicrobial peptide, hCAP18 fragment, CAMP
The only cathelicidin found in humans, a 37 residue cationic peptide released by cleavage of the hCAP18 precursor. It is both an antimicrobial and a signalling molecule in innate immunity.
Where it came from
Characterised in the 1990s as the human member of the cathelicidin family. Expression is regulated in part by vitamin D.
What the literature examines
- Membrane disruption of bacteria, including biofilm forming strains
- Chemotaxis and innate immune signalling
- Wound healing and re-epithelialisation
- Vitamin D dependent expression in macrophages
- Its role in the pathology of rosacea and psoriasis
State of the evidence
Extensive in vitro and animal work. Human trials of administered LL-37 are limited to small early studies, notably in venous leg ulcers.
What a buyer should know
LL-37 is genuinely double edged in the literature. Elevated cathelicidin is implicated in the inflammatory pathology of rosacea and psoriasis, so more of it is not straightforwardly better. It is also cytotoxic to mammalian cells at higher concentrations, which is a property of the same membrane activity that makes it antimicrobial.
Handling and stability
Highly cationic and prone to adsorbing onto glass and plastic surfaces, which affects recovery from solution. Lyophilised as supplied.
Read it yourself
We do not publish a curated citation list, because a hand picked list of papers is a sales tool. These links run a live query against the public databases, so you see everything, including the results that do not suit us.
Supplied for laboratory research use only. Nothing on this page is a dose, a protocol or a claim of effect in humans, and nothing here is medical advice. Read our research use policy.