| 1. |
- Aaltonen, H. Laura, et al.
(författare)
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Airspace dimension assessment with nanoparticles as a proposed biomarker for emphysema
- 2021
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Ingår i: Thorax. - : BMJ. - 0040-6376 .- 1468-3296. ; 76:10, s. 1040-1043
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Airspace dimension assessment with nanoparticles (AiDA) is a novel method to measure distal airspace radius non-invasively. In this study, AiDA radii were measured in 618 individuals from the population-based Swedish CArdiopulmonary BioImaging Study, SCAPIS. Subjects with emphysema detected by computed tomography were compared to non-emphysematous subjects. The 47 individuals with mainly mild-to-moderate visually detected emphysema had significantly larger AiDA radii, compared with non-emphysematous subjects (326±48 μm vs 291±36 μm); OR for emphysema per 10 μm: 1.22 (1.13-1.30, p<0.0001). Emphysema according to CT densitometry was similarly associated with larger radii compared with non-emphysematous CT examinations (316±41 μm vs 291 μm±26 μm); OR per 10 μm: 1.16 (1.08-1.24, p<0.0001). The results are in line with comparable studies. The results show that AiDA is a potential biomarker for emphysema in individuals in the general population.
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| 2. |
- Ahmadi, Zainab, et al.
(författare)
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End-of-life care in oxygen-dependent ILD compared with lung cancer : a national population-based study
- 2016
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Ingår i: Thorax. - : BMJ. - 0040-6376 .- 1468-3296. ; 71:6, s. 510-516
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Rationale: Advanced fibrosing interstitial lung disease (ILD) is often progressive and associated with a high burden of symptoms and poor prognosis. Little is known about the symptom prevalence and access to palliative care services at end of life (EOL).Objectives: Compare prevalence of symptoms and palliative treatments between patients dying with oxygen-dependent ILD and patients dying of lung cancer.Methods: Nationwide registry-based cohort study of patients with oxygen-dependent ILD and patients with lung cancer who died between 1 January 2011 and 14 October 2013. Prevalence of symptoms and treatments during the last seven days of life were compared using data in Swedish Registry of Palliative Care.Measurements and main results: 285 patients with ILD and 10 822 with lung cancer were included. In ILD, death was more likely to be 'unexpected' (15% vs 4%), less likely to occur in a palliative care setting (17% vs 40%) and EOL discussions with the patients (41% vs 59%) were less common than in lung cancer. Patients with ILD suffered more from breathlessness (75% vs 42%) while patients with lung cancer had more pain (51% vs 73%) (p<0.005 for all comparisons). Patients with ILD had more unrelieved breathlessness, pain and anxiety. The survival time from initiation of oxygen therapy in ILD was a median 8.4 months (IQR 3.4-19.2 months).Conclusions: Patients with ILD receive poorer access to specialist EOL care services and experience more breathlessness than patients with lung cancer. This study highlights the need of better EOL care in oxygen-dependent ILD.
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| 3. |
- Allam, Venkata, et al.
(författare)
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Macrophage migration inhibitory factor promotes glucocorticoid resistance of neutrophilic inflammation in a murine model of severe asthma
- 2023
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Ingår i: Thorax. - : BMJ Publishing Group Ltd. - 0040-6376 .- 1468-3296. ; 78:7, s. 661-673
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Background: Severe neutrophilic asthma is resistant to treatment with glucocorticoids. The immunomodulatory protein macrophage migration inhibitory factor (MIF) promotes neutrophil recruitment to the lung and antagonises responses to glucocorticoids. We hypothesised that MIF promotes glucocorticoid resistance of neutrophilic inflammation in severe asthma.Methods: We examined whether sputum MIF protein correlated with clinical and molecular characteristics of severe neutrophilic asthma in the Unbiased Biomarkers for the Prediction of Respiratory Disease Outcomes (U-BIOPRED) cohort. We also investigated whether MIF regulates neutrophilic inflammation and glucocorticoid responsiveness in a murine model of severe asthma in vivo.Results: MIF protein levels positively correlated with the number of exacerbations in the previous year, sputum neutrophils and oral corticosteroid use across all U-BIOPRED subjects. Further analysis of MIF protein expression according to U-BIOPRED-defined transcriptomic-associated clusters (TACs) revealed increased MIF protein and a corresponding decrease in annexin-A1 protein in TAC2, which is most closely associated with airway neutrophilia and NLRP3 inflammasome activation. In a murine model of severe asthma, treatment with the MIF antagonist ISO-1 significantly inhibited neutrophilic inflammation and increased glucocorticoid responsiveness. Coimmunoprecipitation studies using lung tissue lysates demonstrated that MIF directly interacts with and cleaves annexin-A1, potentially reducing its biological activity.Conclusion: Our data suggest that MIF promotes glucocorticoid-resistance of neutrophilic inflammation by reducing the biological activity of annexin-A1, a potent glucocorticoid-regulated protein that inhibits neutrophil accumulation at sites of inflammation. This represents a previously unrecognised role for MIF in the regulation of inflammation and points to MIF as a potential therapeutic target for the management of severe neutrophilic asthma.
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| 4. |
- Amaral, Andre F. S., et al.
(författare)
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Chronic airflow obstruction and ambient particulate air pollution
- 2021
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Ingår i: Thorax. - : BMJ Publishing Group Ltd. - 0040-6376 .- 1468-3296. ; 76:12, s. 1236-1241
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Smoking is the most well-established cause of chronic airflow obstruction (CAO) but particulate air pollution and poverty have also been implicated. We regressed sex-specific prevalence of CAO from 41 Burden of Obstructive Lung Disease study sites against smoking prevalence from the same study, the gross national income per capita and the local annual mean level of ambient particulate matter (PM2.5) using negative binomial regression. The prevalence of CAO was not independently associated with PM2.5 but was strongly associated with smoking and was also associated with poverty. Strengthening tobacco control and improved understanding of the link between CAO and poverty should be prioritised.
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| 5. |
- Amaral, Andre F. S., et al.
(författare)
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Interaction between gas cooking and GSTM1 null genotype in bronchial responsiveness : results from the European Community Respiratory Health Survey
- 2014
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Ingår i: Thorax. - : BMJ. - 0040-6376 .- 1468-3296. ; 69:6, s. 558-564
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Background Increased bronchial responsiveness is characteristic of asthma. Gas cooking, which is a major indoor source of the highly oxidant nitrogen dioxide, has been associated with respiratory symptoms and reduced lung function. However, little is known about the effect of gas cooking on bronchial responsiveness and on how this relationship may be modified by variants in the genes GSTM1, GSTT1 and GSTP1, which influence antioxidant defences. Methods The study was performed in subjects with forced expiratory volume in one second at least 70% of predicted who took part in the multicentre European Community Respiratory Health Survey, had bronchial responsiveness assessed by methacholine challenge and had been genotyped for GSTM1, GSTT1 and GSTP1-rs1695. Information on the use of gas for cooking was obtained from interviewer-led questionnaires. Effect modification by genotype on the association between the use of gas for cooking and bronchial responsiveness was assessed within each participating country, and estimates combined using meta-analysis. Results Overall, gas cooking, as compared with cooking with electricity, was not associated with bronchial responsiveness (beta=-0.08, 95% CI -0.40 to 0.25, p=0.648). However, GSTM1 significantly modified this effect (beta for interaction=-0.75, 95% CI - 1.16 to -0.33, p=4x10(-4)), with GSTM1 null subjects showing more responsiveness if they cooked with gas. No effect modification by GSTT1 or GSTP1-rs1695 genotypes was observed. Conclusions Increased bronchial responsiveness was associated with gas cooking among subjects with the GSTM1 null genotype. This may reflect the oxidant effects on the bronchi of exposure to nitrogen dioxide.
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| 6. |
- Amin, Kawa, et al.
(författare)
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Relationship between inflammatory cells and structural changes in the lungs of asymptomatic and never smokers : a biopsy study
- 2003
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Ingår i: Thorax. - : BMJ. - 0040-6376 .- 1468-3296. ; 58:2, s. 135-142
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- BACKGROUND: A study was undertaken to investigate the relationship between inflammatory cells and structural changes in the mucosa of the airways in an epidemiological sample of a group of asymptomatic smokers (smokers who had never sought medical attention for respiratory problems) and in non-smoking subjects. METHODS: Bronchial biopsy specimens were taken from 29 smokers and 16 never smokers and stained with monoclonal antibodies HNL, EPO, AA1, CD68 in order to identify neutrophils, eosinophils, mast cells, and macrophages, respectively. The biopsy specimens were also stained with monoclonal antibodies to the cytokines interleukin (IL)-1beta and IL-8. Structural changes were identified by staining the biopsy specimens with antibodies to tenascin and laminin and by evaluating the condition of the epithelial layer. RESULTS: The numbers of all inflammatory cells and of cytokine staining cells were significantly increased in smokers. The thickness of the tenascin and laminin layers was increased in the smoking group and the integrity of the epithelial layer was significantly reduced. In smokers the epithelial integrity was negatively correlated with the number of eosinophils and macrophages. The thickness of the tenascin and laminin layers was positively correlated with AA1 and EPO positive cells only. CONCLUSION: High numbers of inflammatory cells are present in the bronchial mucosa of asymptomatic smokers which have a clear relationship with the impaired epithelial integrity. The increased thickness of the laminin and tenascin layers in these subjects was strongly related to the presence of eosinophils and mast cells, suggesting a role for these cells in tissue remodelling of the airways of smokers.
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| 7. |
- Amin, Reshma, et al.
(författare)
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Hypertonic saline improves the LCI in paediatric patients with CF with normal lung function.
- 2010
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Ingår i: Thorax. - : BMJ. - 1468-3296 .- 0040-6376. ; 65:5, s. 379-83
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- BACKGROUND AND AIMS Sensitive outcome measures to assess the efficacy of therapeutic interventions in patients with cystic fibrosis (CF) with mild lung disease are currently lacking. Our objective was to study the ability of the lung clearance index (LCI), a measure of ventilation inhomogeneity, to detect a treatment response to hypertonic saline inhalation in paediatric patients with CF with normal spirometry. METHODS In a crossover trial, 20 patients with CF received 4 weeks of hypertonic saline (HS) and isotonic saline (IS) in a randomised sequence separated by a 4 week washout period. The primary end point was the change in the LCI due to HS versus IS. RESULTS Baseline characteristics including the LCI were not significantly different between both study periods. Four weeks of twice-daily HS inhalation significantly improved the LCI compared with IS (1.16, 95% CI 0.26 to 2.05; p=0.016), whereas other outcome measures such as spirometry and quality of life failed to reach statistical significance. Randomisation order had no significant impact on the treatment effect. CONCLUSIONS The LCI, but not spirometry was able to detect a treatment effect from HS inhalation in patients with CF with mild disease and may be a suitable tool to assess early intervention strategies in this patient population. Clinical trial number NCT00635141.
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| 8. |
- Andersson, Cecilia K, et al.
(författare)
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Novel Site-Specific Mast Cell Subpopulations in the Human Lung.
- 2009
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Ingår i: Thorax. - : BMJ. - 1468-3296 .- 0040-6376. ; 64, s. 297-305
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- BACKGROUND: Lung mast cells are stereotypically divided into connective tissue (MCTC) and mucosal (MCT) mast cells. This study tests the hypothesis that each of these subtypes can be divided further into site-specific populations created by the microenvironment within each anatomic lung compartment. METHODS: To study mast cells under non-inflamed conditions surgical resections and bronchial and transbronchial biopsies from non-smoking individuals were obtained to investigate morphometric and molecular characteristics of mast cell populations in multiple lung structures by immunohistochemistry and electron microscopy. RESULTS: MCT and MCTC coexisted at all compartments with MCT being the prevailing type in bronchi, bronchioles and the alveolar parenchyma. MCTC were more abundant in pulmonary vessels and the pleura. Each of the MCTC and MCT phenotypes could be further differentiated into site-specific populations. MCTC was of significantly larger size in pulmonary vessels than in small airway walls (p<0.001) while a reversed pattern was observed for MCT (p<0.001). Within each MCTC and MCT population there was also distinct site-specific expression pattern of the IgE-receptor, IL-9 receptor, renin, histidine decarboxylase, VEGF, FGF, 5-Lipoxygense, and LTC4-synthase; e.g. bronchial MCT consistently expressed more histidine decarboxylase than alveolar MCT (p<0.004). Renin content was high among vascular MCTC but markedly reduced among MCTC in other compartments (p<0.0002). Notably, for both MCTC and MCT IgE-receptor was highly expressed in conducting airways but virtually absent in alveolar parenchyma. CONCLUSION: Our findings demonstrate novel site-specific sub-populations of lung MCTC and MCT. This observation is suggested to have important implications in unravelling the recently proposed role of mast cells in a variety of pulmonary diseases.
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