ABSTRACT
The alteration in the expression of the factors involved in the apoptotic mechanism of the respiratory cell epithelium of asthma patients remains an unsolved issue. The mitochondria holds a very important place in the apoptotic chain, making therefore the study of the proteins belonging to the Bcl-2 family that "controls" permeability of mitochondria's membrane extremely interesting, both for asthma as for other diseases. Our main concern in this study was to reveal the changes in expression of Bax factor at the level of the respiratory epithelium in asthma patients. We examined a number of 21 patients with different degrees of asthma. The tissue samples were accordingly processed for immunotyping with anti-Bax antibodies. Following microscopic examination we have found, even in mild cases of asthma, a decreased expression of Bax factor at the epithelial level, compared with the witness. The discovery of all these factors involved in cell apoptosis as well as their alteration in Asthma will be the future of therapeutic approach in these patients.
Subject(s)
Asthma/metabolism , bcl-2-Associated X Protein/metabolism , Adult , Aged , Apoptosis , Asthma/genetics , Asthma/therapy , Biomarkers/metabolism , Case-Control Studies , Female , Genetic Therapy , Humans , Male , Middle Aged , Respiratory Mucosa/metabolism , Retrospective Studies , Severity of Illness IndexABSTRACT
Pulmonary thrombo-embolism (PTE) is responsible for a reasonable number of undiagnosed pleural effusions. It is considered that PTE causes pleural effusions more frequently than bronchogenic carcinoma although statistics bring it to less than 5% of diagnosed cases. This probably relies in an insufficient investigation of patients with pleural effusion as well as considering PTE a rare cause of disease. Our case reveals both a delay in the diagnosis as well as a genetic linkage for PTE.
Subject(s)
Pulmonary Embolism/diagnosis , Anti-Bacterial Agents/therapeutic use , Anticoagulants/therapeutic use , Diagnosis, Differential , Humans , Male , Pleural Effusion/diagnosis , Pleural Effusion/etiology , Pneumonia/complications , Pulmonary Embolism/complications , Pulmonary Embolism/diagnostic imaging , Pulmonary Embolism/drug therapy , Pulmonary Embolism/genetics , Radiography , Radionuclide Imaging , Risk Factors , Smoking/adverse effects , Treatment Outcome , Young AdultABSTRACT
UNLABELLED: In this paper we want to study the changes in the expression of cell proliferation factor Ki67 in the respiratory epithelium of patients diagnosed with bronchial asthma. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Twenty one patients with bronchial asthma having different degrees of severity (according to GINA 2002) have been included in our study. Fragments of bronchial mucosa were obtained through fiberbronchoscopy, prepared for histologic examination in view of immune marking with anti-Ki67 antibodies. RESULTS: Microscopic examination revealed a progressive increase in the number of Ki-67 cells in the respiratory epithelium corresponding to the severity of asthma (following FEV1 parameters). CONCLUSION: The increase in the cell proliferation in the respiratory epithelium represents one of the mechanisms that can help in rebuilding the epithelial structure destroyed by the chronic irritation.
