Update on innate immunity and perspectives on metabolite regulation in acute pancreatitis.

PURPOSE OF REVIEW: Acute pancreatitis is a major cause of gastrointestinal morbidity for which specific therapy is greatly needed to prevent progression to and induce resolution of severe disease.

RECENT FINDINGS: Innate immune components and metabolite signaling are recently identified as strong determinants of disease severity and resolution in acute pancreatitis and this work will be discussed herein.

SUMMARY: Targeting innate immune cell populations and metabolite signaling pathways in acute pancreatitis may result in broader and ultimately more efficacious re-direction of the inflammatory programme toward disease resolution and improved clinical outcomes.