CXCL8 and cystic fibrosis: Secretion of IL-8 in CF airway epithelial cells, reportedly, was not due to the increase in NF-kB-dependent IL-8 promoter transcription, but to p38 MAPK and ERK [52].In our study, inhibition of p38 MAPK remarkably attenuated the secretion of IL-6 and IL-8, suggesting that p38 MAPK may be essential for inflammatory responses in the A549 cell response to P. aeruginosa. However, contradictory reports exist concerning the role of p38 MAPK in P. aeruginosa signaling [44].