American journal of respiratory and critical care medicine
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Am. J. Respir. Crit. Care Med. · Aug 2014
Galactomannan in the Bronchoalveolar Lavage for Diagnosing Invasive Fungal Disease.
Invasive fungal disease (IFD) is a significant cause of morbidity and mortality in immunocompromised patients. ⋯ GM in BAL had modest agreement with EORTC/MSG criteria for diagnosing IFD in immunocompromised patients with a high degree of antifungal exposure.
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Am. J. Respir. Crit. Care Med. · Aug 2014
MAIT Cell Function is Modulated by PD-1 Signaling in Patients with Active Tuberculosis.
Mucosal-associated invariant T (MAIT) cells have been proven to play an important role in host defense against mycobacterial infection in animal infection models; however, the functional role of MAIT cells in patients with active tuberculosis (TB) is still largely unknown. ⋯ MAIT-cell immune response to antigen stimulation in patients with active TB is regulated by PD-1, which could be a potential target for TB immunotherapy.
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Am. J. Respir. Crit. Care Med. · Aug 2014
Impaired Angiogenesis and Peripheral Muscle Microcirculation Loss Contributes to Exercise Intolerance in Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension.
Pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) is characterized by significant exercise intolerance, which is multifactorial and involves skeletal muscle alterations. There is growing evidence that microRNAs (miRs) are involved in PAH pathogenesis. ⋯ We demonstrate for the first time that exercise intolerance in PAH is associated with skeletal muscle microcirculation loss and impaired angiogenesis secondary to miR-126 down-regulation.