ITGB6 and infection: ITGB6, the rate-limiting subunit of the αvβ6 integrin heterodimer, is elevated in the context of inflammatory stimuli (for example, infections and wound healing) where it is responsible for activation of the anti-inflammatory cytokine transforming growth factor-β1 and inhibiting immune cell infiltration, indicating that the pathogenic effects of increasing ITGB6 levels in the present study may be a sign of long-term, inadequately controlled systemic inflammation after infection50,51.