Evidence map›Paper›PMID 41346227›Full record

ArticleBlood2026

Lipid nanotubes unmask neutrophils for complement attack.

Xiaobo Liu, Yuanyuan Wang, Alexander T Bauer, Alex Marki, Christian F Krebs, Karsten Häffner, Bente Siebels, Hartmut Schlüter, Frank Hildebrand, Rebecca Halbgebauer and 5 more

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Blood, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
1citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

1 citing paper in PubMed.

  1. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

15 authors.

Xiaobo LiuDepartment of Dermatology and Venereology, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany.
Yuanyuan WangDepartment of Dermatology and Venereology, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany.ORCID 0000-0001-7822-9356
Alexander T BauerDepartment of Dermatology and Venereology, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany.
Alex MarkiCenter for Translational Transplant Medicine, MedStar Georgetown Transplant Institute, Washington, DC.
Christian F KrebsDepartment of Medicine III, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany.
Karsten HäffnerDepartment of Internal Medicine IV (Nephrology), Medical Center, Faculty of Medicine, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany.ORCID 0000-0003-2091-0784
Bente SiebelsSection of Mass Spectrometry and Proteomics, Center of Diagnostics, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany.ORCID 0000-0001-9183-0381
Hartmut SchlüterSection of Mass Spectrometry and Proteomics, Center of Diagnostics, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany.ORCID 0000-0002-9358-7036
Frank HildebrandDepartment of Orthopedics, Trauma and Reconstructive Surgery, Rheinisch-Westfalische Technische Hochschule Aachen University, Aachen, Germany.ORCID 0000-0001-7729-9838
Rebecca HalbgebauerInstitute of Clinical and Experimental Trauma Immunology, Ulm University Medical Center, Ulm, Germany.ORCID 0000-0001-8060-2076
Markus Huber-LangInstitute of Clinical and Experimental Trauma Immunology, Ulm University Medical Center, Ulm, Germany.
Klaus LeyImmunology Center of Georgia, Augusta University, Augusta, GA.
Matthias F SchneiderMedical and Biological Physics, Department of Physics, Technische Universität Dortmund University, Dortmund, Germany.
Stefan W SchneiderDepartment of Dermatology and Venereology, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany.
Christian GorzelannyDepartment of Dermatology and Venereology, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany.ORCID 0000-0002-3788-6429

Funding

Vascular macrophages and T cells in atherosclerosisR35HL145241 · NHLBI · LA JOLLA INSTITUTE FOR IMMUNOLOGY · PI LEY, KLAUS F. · 2019 to 2025
$5.9M
NHLBI NIH HHS R35 HL145241
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

abstractNeutrophils, critical components of innate immunity, undergo significant morphological changes during phagocytosis. In this study, we demonstrate that neutrophils exposed to shear stress generate lipid nanotubes (NTs) with a unique composition. Compared with the proteome of whole neutrophils, NTs notably lack cytoskeletal elements and the complement-inhibiting transmembrane protein CD46. Consequently, these NTs are recognized by the complement system and selectively opsonized the complement component C3b. Biophysical characterization of NTs confirmed that their integrity relies on lipid-lipid interactions and that they pinch off from neutrophils to form NT-derived vesicles (NTDVs). We detected C3b+ NTDVs in plasma from patients and animal models experiencing diverse inflammatory conditions, including metastatic melanoma, vasculitis, and polytrauma. Further functional experiments indicate that resting neutrophils phagocytose complement-opsonized NTDVs, leading to cell activation, including the production of reactive oxygen species. In conclusion, our data suggest a significant role for neutrophil-derived NTs in a wide range of inflammatory diseases and reveal a previously unknown mode of cell-cell communication.

Indexed as

Complement C3bLipidsNanotubesNeutrophilsAnimalsHumansMicePhagocytosisComplement C3bLipids

Identifiers

PMID41346227
PMCPMC13385194

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Registered trials

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.