High Quality Content by WIKIPEDIA articles! Damage associated molecular pattern molecules (DAMPs) are molecules that can initiate and perpetuate immune response in the noninfectious inflammatory response. (In contrast, Pathogen-associated molecular pattern molecules (PAMPs) initiate and perpetuate the infectious pathogen inflammatory response.) Many DAMPs are nuclear or cytosolic proteins. When released outside the cell or exposed on the surface of the cell following tissue injury, they move from a reducing to an oxidizing milieu, which results in their denaturation . Also, following necrosis (a kind of cell death), tumor DNA is released outside the nucleus, and outside the cell, and becomes a DAMP.