Host-defense peptides and their potential use as biomarkers in human diseases

Since the early 19th century, host-defense peptides (HDPs) have been known to play a crucial role in innate host defense. Subsequent work has demonstrated their role in adaptive immunity as well as their involvement in cancer and also a number of inflammatory and/or autoimmune diseases. In addition to these multiple functional activities, several studies have shown that HDP accumulation might be correlated with various human diseases and, therefore, could be used as a biomarkers for such. Thus, research has aimed to validate the clinical use of HDPs for diagnosis, prognosis, and further treatment. In this review, we outline the most recent findings related to the use of HDPs as biomarkers, their clinical and epidemiological value, and the techniques used to determine the levels of HDPs.