Hydrogen Sulfide in Inflammation: A Novel Mediator and Therapeutic Target.

Inflammation is a normal response to injury, but uncontrolled inflammation can lead to several diseases. In recent years, research has shown endogenously synthesized hydrogen sulfide (HS) to be a novel mediator of inflammation. This review summarizes the current understanding and recent advances of HS role with respect to inflammation in different diseases. Promising early results from clinical studies suggest an important role of HS in human inflammatory disease. Defining the precise mechanism by which HS contributes to inflammation is a complex challenge, and there is active ongoing research that is focused on addressing this question. Most of this work has been conducted on animal models of human disease and isolated/cultured cells, and its translation to the clinic is another challenge in the area of HS research. Defining the mechanism by which HS acts as an inflammatory mediator will help us better understand different inflammatory diseases and help develop novel therapeutic approaches for these diseases.