American journal of respiratory and critical care medicine
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Periostin is a matricellular protein that has been implicated in many disease states. It interacts with multiple signaling cascades to modulate the expression of downstream genes that regulate cellular interactions within the extracellular matrix. This review focuses on the role of periostin in respiratory diseases, including asthma and idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis, and its potential to help guide treatment or assess prognosis. ⋯ Furthermore, in asthma, periostin may regulate subepithelial fibrosis and mucus production and may serve as a systemic biomarker of eosinophilic airway inflammation. Periostin is also highly expressed in the lungs of patients with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis, and its serum levels may predict clinical progression. Overall, periostin contributes to multiple pathogenic processes across respiratory diseases, and peripheral blood levels of periostin may have utility as a biomarker of treatment response and disease progression.
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Am. J. Respir. Crit. Care Med. · May 2016
Blood Eosinophils and Exacerbations in COPD: the Copenhagen General Population Study.
Whether high blood eosinophils are associated with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) exacerbations among individuals with COPD in the general population is largely unknown. ⋯ Among individuals with COPD in the general population, increased blood eosinophil levels above 0.34 × 10(9) cells per liter were associated with a 1.76-fold increased risk of severe exacerbations.
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Am. J. Respir. Crit. Care Med. · May 2016
High-density Genetic Mapping Identifies New Susceptibility Variants in Sarcoidosis Phenotypes and Shows Genomic-driven Phenotypic Differences.
Sarcoidosis is a multisystem disease of unknown cause. Löfgren's syndrome (LS) is a characteristic subgroup of sarcoidosis that is associated with a good prognosis in sarcoidosis. However, little is known about its genetic architecture or its broader phenotype, non-LS sarcoidosis. ⋯ Comprehensive and integrative analyses of genetics, transcription, and pathway modeling on LS and non-LS indicates that these sarcoidosis phenotypes have different genetic susceptibility, genomic distributions, and cellular activities, suggesting distinct molecular mechanisms in pathways related to immune response with a common region.
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Am. J. Respir. Crit. Care Med. · May 2016
An Official American Thoracic Society Research Statement: Impact of Mild Obstructive Sleep Apnea in Adults.
Mild obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is a highly prevalent disorder in adults; however, whether mild OSA has significant neurocognitive and cardiovascular complications is uncertain. ⋯ There is evidence that treatment of mild OSA in individuals who demonstrate subjective sleepiness may be beneficial. Treatment may also improve quality of life. Future research agendas should focus on clarifying the effect of mild OSA and impact of effective treatment on other neurocognitive and cardiovascular endpoints as detailed in the document.
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Am. J. Respir. Crit. Care Med. · May 2016
NOX2 Activation of NKT Cells is Blocked by Adenosine A2A Receptor to Inhibit Lung Reperfusion Injury.
Ischemia-reperfusion (IR) injury after lung transplantation, which affects both short- and long-term allograft survival, involves activation of NADPH oxidase 2 (NOX2) and activation of invariant natural killer T (iNKT) cells to produce IL-17. Adenosine A2A receptor (A2AR) agonists are known to potently attenuate lung IR injury and IL-17 production. However, mechanisms for iNKT cell activation after IR and A2AR agonist-mediated protection remain unclear. ⋯ NOX2 plays a key role in inducing iNKT cell-mediated IL-17 production and subsequent lung injury after IR. A primary mechanism for A2AR agonist-mediated protection entails inhibition of NOX2 in iNKT cells. Therefore, agonism of A2ARs on iNKT cells may be a novel therapeutic strategy to prevent primary graft dysfunction after lung transplantation.