Great question! Comparing the results from previous experiments with healthy donors and sepsis patients to the new experiments with the HL-60s may help prove that the upregulation of this protein affects immune function in some way. It's more of a proof of concept that this protein is increased during sepsis.
This protein may serve as an indicator or biomarker for sepsis. We're talking years into the future here, but imagine a test with one drop of blood from the tip of one's finger onto an test strip that would tell a physician within seconds that a patient is septic. Cool huh?
Here's a very interesting article from 2019 describing another way that scientists are trying to beat the clock against sepsis and septic shock. https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-wales-49677463