Evidence map›Paper›PMID 41521316›Full record

ReviewMilitary Medical Research2026

The "cytokine storm" in infection and sepsis: win the battle but lose the war.

Jiang-Bo Fan, Qin-Yuan Li, Xi-Feng Feng, Si-Yuan Huang, Rui Wang, Feng-Ying Liao, Di Liu, Wen-Yi Liu, Jian-Hui Sun, Hua-Cai Zhang and 4 more

Abstract readReview
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Review in Military Medical Research, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 18 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
18citing papers in PubMed, 2 pooled it
–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

18 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.

  1. Pooled it
  2. Pooled it
  3. Review
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  5. Death following high-dose AAV9 gene therapy in a patient with advanced SMA-PME.Molecular therapy : the journal of the American Society of Gene Therapy · 2026
    Article
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  7. Review
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  9. Immune cell disorder in viral pneumonia.Journal of translational medicine · 2026
    Review
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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

14 authors.

Jiang-Bo Fan *Department of Trauma Medical Center, Daping Hospital, State Key Laboratory of Trauma and Chemical Poisoning, Army Medical University, Chongqing, 400042, China.
Qin-Yuan Li *Department of Respiratory Children's Hospital of Chongqing Medical University, National Clinical Research Center for Children and Adolescents' Health and Diseases, Ministry of Education Key Laboratory of Child Development and Disorders, Chongqing Key Laboratory of Child Rare Diseases in Infection and Immunity, Chongqing, 400014, China.
Xi-Feng Feng *Department of Trauma Medical Center, Daping Hospital, State Key Laboratory of Trauma and Chemical Poisoning, Army Medical University, Chongqing, 400042, China.
Si-Yuan HuangDepartment of Trauma Medical Center, Daping Hospital, State Key Laboratory of Trauma and Chemical Poisoning, Army Medical University, Chongqing, 400042, China.
Rui WangDepartment of Trauma Medical Center, Daping Hospital, State Key Laboratory of Trauma and Chemical Poisoning, Army Medical University, Chongqing, 400042, China.
Feng-Ying LiaoDepartment of Trauma Medical Center, Daping Hospital, State Key Laboratory of Trauma and Chemical Poisoning, Army Medical University, Chongqing, 400042, China.
Di LiuDepartment of Trauma Medical Center, Daping Hospital, State Key Laboratory of Trauma and Chemical Poisoning, Army Medical University, Chongqing, 400042, China.
Wen-Yi LiuDepartment of Trauma Medical Center, Daping Hospital, State Key Laboratory of Trauma and Chemical Poisoning, Army Medical University, Chongqing, 400042, China.
Jian-Hui SunDepartment of Trauma Medical Center, Daping Hospital, State Key Laboratory of Trauma and Chemical Poisoning, Army Medical University, Chongqing, 400042, China.
Hua-Cai ZhangDepartment of Trauma Medical Center, Daping Hospital, State Key Laboratory of Trauma and Chemical Poisoning, Army Medical University, Chongqing, 400042, China.
Hui-Ting ZhouInstitute of Pediatric Research, Children's Hospital of Soochow University, Suzhou, 215025, Jiangsu, China.
Jian-Xin JiangDepartment of Trauma Medical Center, Daping Hospital, State Key Laboratory of Trauma and Chemical Poisoning, Army Medical University, Chongqing, 400042, China. hellojjx@tmmu.edu.cn.
Zhen WangDepartment of Critical Care Medicine, State Key Laboratory of Trauma, Burns and Combined Injury, Daping Hospital, Army Medical University, Chongqing, 400042, China. dpicuwz@tmmu.edu.cn.
Ling ZengDepartment of Trauma Medical Center, Daping Hospital, State Key Laboratory of Trauma and Chemical Poisoning, Army Medical University, Chongqing, 400042, China. zengling_1025@tmmu.edu.cn.ORCID 0000-0002-9640-9083

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

The cytokine storm, a life-threatening systemic inflammatory syndrome, is the primary driver of multiorgan failure in different clinical situations, including severe infections, autoimmune diseases, chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cell immunotherapy for cancer, and genetic syndromes. This review focuses primarily on cytokine storms triggered by severe infections such as viral pneumonia and bacterial sepsis, and explores the underlying mechanisms of cytokine storms and potential therapeutic interventions. Cytokine storms are characterized primarily by the excessive release of proinflammatory cytokines, which are triggered by pathogen-associated molecular patterns (PAMPs), damage-associated molecular patterns (DAMPs), and PANoptosis, all of which activate immune signaling cascades. Amplification mechanisms involve positive feedback loops and the failure of negative feedback mechanisms, leading to uncontrolled inflammation. Like a pyrrhic victory, the excessive activation of the immune system eliminated invading pathogens but caused catastrophic damage due to multiple organ dysfunction syndrome (MODS), turning the life-saving response into a life-threatening war. Therapeutic strategies, including cytokine antagonists, Janus kinase (JAK) inhibitors, caspase inhibitors, glucocorticoids, and blood purification therapies, aim to interrupt the self-amplifying cycle of inflammation that propagates organ injury, thereby reducing MODS and mortality. Challenges include optimizing the treatment timing and patient stratification. Future research should focus on combination therapies and personalized medicine based on the heterogeneity of infections and sepsis. Advances in multiomics and targeted therapies provide new hope for managing infections and sepsis.

Indexed as

Cytokine Release SyndromeSepsisCytokinesHumansMultiple Organ FailureCytokinesCytokine stormInflammatory responseMultiple organ dysfunction syndromeSepsisSevere infection

Identifiers

PMID41521316
PMCPMC12794442

What OpenQuestion holds

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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.