LCN2 and infection: NGAL, also known as lipocalin-2 (LCN2), is a 25-kDa protein encoded by the LCN gene, which was originally identified in neutrophils as a shuttle for iron transport to inhibit bacterial growth.38 In addition, NGAL expression has been identified in the kidney and liver in response to inflammation, infection, intoxication, ischemia, neoplastic formation, and AKI.39–42 NGAL also has antiapoptotic effects and an ability to induce tubular cell proliferation, and these constitute the possible pathways of NGAL-mediated kidney protection in AKI.