**1. Introduction**

[131] Equi, A, et al. Long term azithromycin in children with cystic fibrosis: a randomised,

[132] Wolter, J, et al. Effect of long term treatment with azithromycin on disease parame‐

[133] Southern, K. W, Barker, P. M, & Solis, A. Macrolide antibiotics for cystic fibrosis. Co‐

[134] Wong, C, et al. Azithromycin for prevention of exacerbations in non-cystic fibrosis bronchiectasis (EMBRACE): a randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial.

[135] Altenburg, J, De Graaff, C, Van Der Werf, T, & Boersma, W. Long term azithromycin treatment: A randomised placebo-controlled trial in non-CF bronchiectasis; results from the BAT trial in European Respiratory Society Congress (2011). Amsterdam.

[136] Banerjee, D, Khair, O. A, & Honeybourne, D. The effect of oral clarithromycin on health status and sputum bacteriology in stable COPD. Respir Med, (2005). , 208-215.

[137] Seemungal, T. A, et al. Long-term erythromycin therapy is associated with decreased chronic obstructive pulmonary disease exacerbations. Am J Respir Crit Care Med,

[138] Albert, R. K, et al. Azithromycin for Prevention of Exacerbations of COPD. N Engl J

[139] Shortridge, V. D, et al. Prevalence of macrolide resistance mechanisms in Streptococ‐ cus pneumoniae isolates from a multicenter antibiotic resistance surveillance study conducted in the United States in 1994-1995. Clin Infect Dis, (1999). , 1186-1188. [140] Berg, H. F, et al. Emergence and persistence of macrolide resistance in oropharyngeal flora and elimination of nasal carriage of Staphylococcus aureus after therapy with slow-release clarithromycin: a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study.

[141] Malhotra-kumar, S, et al. Effect of azithromycin and clarithromycin therapy on phar‐ yngeal carriage of macrolide-resistant streptococci in healthy volunteers: a rando‐

[142] Leclercq, R, & Courvalin, P. Resistance to macrolides and related antibiotics in Strep‐ tococcus pneumoniae. Antimicrob Agents Chemother, (2002). , 2727-2734.

[143] Klugman, K. P, & Lonks, J. R. Hidden epidemic of macrolide-resistant pneumococci.

[144] Halpern, M. T, et al. Meta-analysis of bacterial resistance to macrolides. J Antimicrob

mised, double-blind, placebo-controlled study. Lancet, (2007). , 482-490.

placebo-controlled crossover trial. Lancet, (2002). , 978-984.

chrane Database Syst Rev, (2004). , CD002203.

98 Oncogenesis, Inflammatory and Parasitic Tropical Diseases of the Lung

Antimicrob Agents Chemother, (2004). , 4183-4188.

Emerg Infect Dis, (2005). , 802-807.

Chemother, (2005). , 748-757.

Lancet, (2012). , 660-667.

(2008). , 1139-1147.

Med, (2011). , 689-698.

ters in cystic fibrosis: a randomised trial. Thorax, (2002). , 212-216.

Neutrophils, or polymorphonuclear leukocytes (PMNs), are a key component in the innate immune system and a powerful player in host defense. Because of this, PMNs have been studied for over a century, although current understanding of their primary function, traf‐ ficking to sites of infection and catabolyzing microbial pathogens, is unchanged. PMNs are viewed by some as mere blunt immune instruments, utilized by the host against a broad ar‐ ray of pathogens. However, a careful review of both neutrophil function and dysfunction re‐ veals a cell of discrete coordination in both normal homeostasis and disease. Herein, we provide a review of neutrophil biology focusing on PMNs role in chronic inflammatory lung disease. We provide a summary of the current knowledge of these cellular first responders and detail novel therapeutics related to combating their dysfunction in chronic disease.
