Association between Telomere-Related Polymorphisms and the Risk of IPF and COPD as a Precursor Lesion of Lung Cancer: Findings from the Fukuoka Tobacco-Related Lung Disease (FOLD) Registry.

BACKGROUND: Lung cancer coexisting with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) can lead to poor prognosis.  Telomere-related polymorphisms may be implicated in the pathogenesis of these three lung diseases.  As to elucidate the mechanism of lung cancer via IPF or COPD may enable early detection and early treatment of the disease, we firstly examined the association between telomere-related polymorphisms and the risk of IPF and COPD in a case-control study. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A total of 572 patients with IPF (n = 155) or COPD (n = 417), who were derived from our on-going cohort study, and controls (n = 379), who were derived from our previous case-control study, were included in this study.  Telomerase reverse transcriptase (TERT) rs2736100, telomere RNA component (TERC) rs1881984, and oligonucleotide/oligosaccharide-binding fold containing1 (OBFC1) rs11191865 were genotyped with real-time PCR using TaqMan fluorescent probes. Unconditional logistic regression was used to assess the adjusted odds ratios and 95% confidence intervals. RESULTS: TERT rs2736100 was significantly associated with the risk of IPF; increases in the number of this risk allele increased the risk of IPF (Ptrend = 0.008).  Similarly, TERT rs2736100 was associated with the risk of COPD.  In regard to the combined action of the three loci, increasing numbers of "at-risk" genotypes increased the risk of IPF in a dose-dependent manner (P trend=0.003). CONCLUSIONS: TERT rs2736100 was associated with the risks of both IPF and COPD in a Japanese population. A combination of the "at-risk" genotypes might be important to identify the population at risk for IPF more clearly.

Characteristics of tobacco-related lung diseases in Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan: A prospective, multi-institutional, observational study.

BACKGROUND: Tobacco smoking causes a variety of smoking-related diseases, death, and economic damage. Despite targeted anti-smoking campaigns, tobacco-related deaths are expected to increase in Japan. We investigated the current state of non-cancerous lung diseases such as idiopathic interstitial pneumonias (IIPs), chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), and combined pulmonary fibrosis and emphysema (CPFE), which are known to be highly related to tobacco smoking. METHODS: This prospective multi-institutional observational study involved 29 major hospitals within the Fukuoka Prefecture area (Fukuoka tobacco-related lung disease registry study group). Patients diagnosed with IIPs, including CPFE and COPD, registered from September 1, 2013 to April 30, 2016 were included. Clinical background information, laboratory and pulmonary function test results, findings of imaging tests, including chest radiography and chest computed tomography, and DNA isolated from peripheral blood were collected from each patient. Follow-up surveillance involved collection of data regarding the exacerbation of disease and death until 5 years of registration. In the present study, we report the baseline characteristics of the patients registered in this surveillance study. RESULTS: Overall, 1016 patients (524 with IIPs, including 145 CPFE and 492 with COPD) were enrolled. Among the patients with COPD, 96.8% were current or former smokers. Among the patients with IIPs, 69.9% were current or former smokers. CONCLUSION: This study revealed the current status of lung diseases potentially related to tobacco smoking in Fukuoka Prefecture. Both COPD and CPFE were highly related to tobacco smoking, whereas 30% of patients with IIPs had never smoked.

Recurrent idiopathic pulmonary hemosiderosis after long-term remission presented with Sjogren's syndrome: Idiopathic no more?

We report a case of recurrent idiopathic pulmonary hemosiderosis after a long-term remission presented with Sjögren's syndrome. The patient was diagnosed with IPH due to repeated pneumonia and blood sputum in his childhood. He was admitted to our hospital due to exertional dyspnea and dry cough with bilateral ground-glass opacity in chest computed tomography at the age of 32. Video-assisted thoracoscopic surgery was performed and the specimens showed nonspecific interstitial pneumonia pattern with diffuse, chronic alveolar hemorrhage, suggesting recurrence of IPH. He was also diagnosed with Sjögren's syndrome. Further immunological studies will reveal the pathogenesis of IPH.

Bax-inhibiting peptide attenuates bleomycin-induced lung injury in mice.

Bax is a pro-apoptotic member of the Bcl-2 family of proteins, and plays a central role in mitochondria-dependent apoptosis. Several lines of evidence have implied that Bax is involved in both epithelial apoptosis and fibroblast proliferation in idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis; however, the mechanisms remain unknown. Bax-inhibiting peptide V5 (BIP-V5) exhibits membrane permeability and inhibits the activation of Bax.The purpose of this study was to investigate whether the control of Bax activity by BIP-V5 reduces the degree of bleomycin-induced lung injury. C57BL/6J mice were administered bleomycin and BIP-V5 intratracheally on day 0. Bronchoalveolar lavage fluid and lung tissue were obtained on day 7. Human pulmonary alveolar epithelial cells (A549 cells) and mouse pulmonary alveolar epithelial cells (LA-4 cells) were stimulated with bleomycin to induce apoptosis.Administration of BIP-V5 improved the survival rate and degree of bleomycin-induced lung injury by suppressing Bax activation in mice. BIP-V5 treatment decreased bleomycin-induced apoptosis of alveolar epithelial cell lines (A549 cells and LA-4 cells) by suppressing Bax activation. These results indicate that administration of BIP-V5 may constitute a novel therapeutic strategy against lung injury.

Depletion of club cells attenuates bleomycin-induced lung injury and fibrosis in mice.

BACKGROUND: The role of bronchiolar epithelial cells in the pathogenesis of pulmonary fibrosis has not been clarified. We previously demonstrated DNA damage in murine bronchioles in the early stages of bleomycin-induced pulmonary fibrosis that subsequently extended to alveolar cells at the advanced stages of the disease. Club cells are progenitor cells for bronchioles and are known to play protective roles against lung inflammation and damage. The aim of the present study was to elucidate the role of club cells in the development of pulmonary fibrosis. METHODS: C57BL/6 J mice received naphthalene intraperitoneally on day -2 to deplete club cells and were given intratracheal bleomycin or a vehicle on day 0. Lung tissues were obtained on days 1, 7, and 14, and bronchoalveolar lavage was performed on day 14. Bronchiolar epithelial cells sampled by laser capture microdissection were analyzed by gene expression microarray analysis on day 14. RESULTS: Club cell depletion induced by naphthalene protected mice from bleomycin-induced lung injury and fibrosis. Bleomycin-triggered bronchiolar TGF-ß1 expression was reduced. Gene expression microarray analysis revealed that genes associated with inflammatory response and chemokine activity were downregulated in the bleomycin-injured bronchiolar epithelium with club cell injury compared to that in bronchiolar epithelium without cell injury. CONCLUSIONS: Club cells are involved in the development of lung injury and fibrosis.

Treatment with a programmed cell death-1-specific antibody has little effect on afatinib- and naphthalene-induced acute pneumonitis in mice.

Although several antibodies developed to target programmed cell death-1 (PD-1) and its ligand (PD-L1) have demonstrated great promise for the treatment of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), and other malignancies, these therapeutic antibodies can cause pneumonitis. Furthermore, epidermal growth factor receptor-tyrosine kinase inhibitor (EGFR-TKI)-induced pneumonitis was reported after treatment with anti PD-1 antibodies. We previously demonstrated that mice with naphthalene-induced airway epithelial injury developed severe gefitinib-induced pneumonitis through a neutrophil-dependent mechanism. The present study aimed to investigate whether treatment with afatinib, an EGFR-TKI that effectively targets EGFR mutation-positive NSCLC, and anti PD-1 antibodies induces pneumonitis in mice. C57BL/6J mice were treated intraperitoneally with naphthalene (200 mg/kg) on day 0. Afatinib (20 mg/kg) was administered orally on days -1 to 13. An anti-PD-1 antibody (0.2 mg/mice) was also administered intraperitoneally every 3 days from day 1 until day 13. The bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) and lung tissues were sampled on day 14. As observed previously with gefitinib, afatinib significantly increased the severity of histopathologic findings and the level of protein in BALF on day 14, compared to treatment with naphthalene alone. A combined anti-PD-1 antibody and afatinib treatment after naphthalene administration had yielded the same histopathological grade of lung inflammation as did afatinib treatment alone. Our results suggest that anti-PD-1 antibody treatment has little effect on afatinib-induced lung injury.

Neutrophil elastase inhibitor sivelestat ameliorates gefitinib-naphthalene-induced acute pneumonitis in mice.

Gefitinib, an epidermal growth factor receptor-tyrosine kinase inhibitor (EGFR-TKI), is an effective therapeutic agent for non-small cell lung cancer with EGFR mutations. It can cause severe acute pneumonitis in some patients. We previously demonstrated that mice with naphthalene-induced airway epithelial injury developed severe gefitinib-induced pneumonitis and that neutrophils played important roles in the development of the disease. This study aimed to investigate the effects of the neutrophil elastase inhibitor sivelestat on gefitinib-induced pneumonitis in mice. C57BL/6J mice received naphthalene (200 mg/kg) intraperitoneally on day 0. Gefitinib (250 or 300 mg/kg) was orally administered to mice from day -1 until day 13. Sivelestat (150 mg/kg) was administered intraperitoneally from day 1 until day 13. Bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) and lung tissues were sampled on day 14. Sivelestat treatment significantly reduced the protein level, neutrophil count, neutrophil elastase activity in BALF, and severity of histopathologic findings on day 14 for mice administered with 250 mg/kg of gefitinib. Moreover, sivelestat treatment significantly improved the survival of mice administered with 300 mg/kg of gefitinib. These results indicate that sivelestat is a promising therapeutic agent for severe acute pneumonitis caused by gefitinib.

Amphiregulin suppresses epithelial cell apoptosis in lipopolysaccharide-induced lung injury in mice.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: As a member of the epidermal growth factor family, amphiregulin contributes to the regulation of cell proliferation. Amphiregulin was reported to be upregulated in damaged lung tissues in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and asthma and in lung epithelial cells in a ventilator-associated lung injury model. In this study, we investigated the effect of amphiregulin on lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced acute lung injury in mice. METHODS: Acute lung injury was induced by intranasal instillation of LPS in female C57BL/6 mice, and the mice were given intraperitoneal injections of recombinant amphiregulin or phosphate-buffered saline 6 and 0.5 h before and 3 h after LPS instillation. The effect of amphiregulin on apoptosis and apoptotic pathways in a murine lung alveolar type II epithelial cell line (LA-4 cells) were examined using flow cytometry and western blotting, respectively. RESULTS: Recombinant amphiregulin suppressed epithelial cell apoptosis in LPS-induced lung injury in mice. Western blotting revealed that amphiregulin suppressed epithelial cell apoptosis by inhibiting caspase-8 activity. CONCLUSION: Amphiregulin signaling may be a therapeutic target for LPS-induced lung injury treatment through its prevention of epithelial cell apoptosis.

The clinical value of serum soluble interleukin-2 receptor in pulmonary sarcoidosis.

Background: Sarcoidosis is a multi-system granulomatous disease in which T-helper type 1 cytokines play a key role. We evaluated the clinical value of serum soluble interleukin-2 receptor (sIL-2R) as a marker of disease activity and prognosis in sarcoidosis. Methods: This study included 67 patients who were newly diagnosed with sarcoidosis from 2006 to 2012 at our department. The clinical and follow-up data were retrospectively collected from their medical records. Results: The mean (±SD) age of the patients was 53.9±15.4 years; 41 patients were women and were significantly older than men. Serum angiotensin-converting enzyme had a mean value of 15.3±6.1 U/L and a positive rate of 10.4%. Serum sIL-2R had mean level of 818.8±453.1 U/mL and a positive rate of 45.9%. Moreover, the sIL-2R level of patients who had lung parenchymal lesions was significantly higher than that of patients who had no lung parenchymal lesions. Fifty-two patients who had no medications were followed up at our hospital for a median period of 37 months (range, 0-107 months). Patients who demonstrated chest imaging evidence of exacerbation (n = 8) tended to have higher sIL-2R levels than those who remained stable. Conclusion: Serum sIL-2R may have a role as a diagnostic and prognostic marker in pulmonary sarcoidosis. (Sarcoidosis Vasc Diffuse Lung Dis 2017; 34: 41-47).

Association between genetic polymorphisms involved in the hypoxia-inducible factor pathway and lung cancer risk: a case-control study in Japan.

AIM: Hypoxia-inducible factor (HIF) contributes to the adaptation of tumor cells to hypoxic conditions, so genetic polymorphisms involved in this pathway may affect cellular response to hypoxia and be associated with cancer risk. Thus, we examined the association between the lung cancer risk and genetic polymorphisms involved in the HIF pathway. METHODS: This case-control study consists of 462 lung cancer cases and 379 controls from Japan. We examined the effect of HIF1A rs11549467, HIF1A rs11549465, HIF1A rs2057482, HIF2A rs13419896 and vascular endothelial growth factor A (VEGFA) rs833061 on the risk of lung cancer using TaqMan real-time PCR assay. Logistic regression was used to estimate the odds ratio (OR) and its 95% confidence interval (CI) of lung cancer risk. The multiplicative and additive interactions with cigarette smoking were also examined. RESULTS: The AA genotype of HIF2A rs13419896 (OR = 0.54, 95% CI = 0.30-0.99) and the CC genotype of VEGFA rs833061 (OR = 0.42, 95% CI = 0.24-0.75) were significantly associated with a decreased risk of lung cancer after adjustment of potential covariates. Additive interactions between these two polymorphisms and cigarette smoking were also significant. CONCLUSION: HIF2A rs13419896 and VEGFA rs833061 were significantly related to lung cancer risk, with possible interaction between polymorphisms and cigarette smoking. Further studies are needed to confirm these results.

A case of diffuse large B-cell lymphoma of the lung demonstrating diffuse ground-glass shadows.

We report a case of 77-year-old woman suffering from breathlessness on exertion and dry cough. Chest computed tomography (CT) showed diffuse ground-glass shadows. A video-assisted thoracoscopic lung biopsy resulted in the diagnosis of diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL). Gene rearrangement analysis using polymerase chain reaction (PCR) technique was performed on the cells in bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) fluid, and showed the clonality of the immunoglobulin heavy chain (IgH) gene, supporting the diagnosis. DLBCL should be considered in the differential diagnosis of diffuse ground-glass shadows in the chest CT, and gene rearrangement analysis may have an impact on the diagnosis of pulmonary DLBCL.

A case of multiple squamous cell papillomas of the trachea.

We report a case of 68-year-old woman suffering from breathlessness on exertion with stridor. A chest computed tomography showed a tumor arising from the posterior wall of the trachea. The diagnosis was squamous cell papilloma of the surgically removed tumor, which had caused the asphyxiation. After removal of the tumor, the patient received radical therapy: semiconductor laser transpiration. Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) detected human papilloma virus (HPV) type 6, thought to be the cause of the respiratory papilloma.

EGFR tyrosine kinase inhibition worsens acute lung injury in mice with repairing airway epithelium.

RATIONALE: Epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) and its ligands play important roles in the regeneration of damaged epithelium and proliferation of various epithelial tumors. Although the EGFR-tyrosine kinase inhibitor gefitinib is effective against advanced non-small cell lung cancer with EGFR mutations, some patients treated with this agent develop severe acute interstitial pneumonia. Characteristics of patients who develop interstitial pneumonia include older age, smoking history, and preexisting interstitial pneumonia suggesting a connection between airway injury and alveolar dysfunction. OBJECTIVES: The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of gefitinib on airway repair after injury. METHODS: C57BL/6J mice received intraperitoneally naphthalene at Day 0. Gefitinib (20, 90, or 200 mg/kg) was given daily at Days--1 to 13 after naphthalene administration. Bronchoalveolar lavage fluid and lung tissue were obtained at Days 7 and 14. Terminal bronchial epithelial cells from Days 7 and 14 were retrieved with laser capture microdissection, and gene expression analyzed using microarray. MEASUREMENTS AND MAIN RESULTS: Gefitinib treatment after naphthalene prolonged neutrophil sequestration and worsened acute lung injury. We found 17 genes with more than a threefold increase in bronchiolar epithelial cells from mice treated with 200 mg/kg of gefitinib after naphthalene at Day 14 compared with those treated with naphthalene alone. Up-regulated genes included S100A8, S100A6, and StefinA3. These genes are known to participate in neutrophil sequestration, acute inflammation, and airway remodeling. CONCLUSIONS: EGFR inhibition in repairing airway epithelial cells modulated significant expression of genes involved in the airway microenvironment, prolonged inflammation, and potentiated acute lung injury.