Effect of increased glucose on the expression of TLRs in human macrophages: potential mechanism of chronic inflammation in diabetes

Diabetic patients suffer from a chronic inflammation regulated by macrophages. M1 and M2 represent two major directions of macrophage functional polarisation. Toll-like receptors (TLR)-mediated response to exogenous and endogenous factors results in pro-inflammatory activation of macrophages. Increased TLR expression in monocytes is associated with the diabetic inflammation and complications. The aim of our study was to examine how elevated glucose levels affect expression of TLRs in M1 and M2. Monocytes were isolated from healthy donors and cultured in serum-free medium in the presence of 5mM or 25mM glucose fo…