Lipid-Laden Macrophages in Pulmonary Diseases.

Pulmonary surfactants play a crucial role in managing lung lipid metabolism, and dysregulation of this process is evident in various lung diseases. Alternations in lipid metabolism lead to pulmonary surfactant damage, resulting in hyperlipidemia in response to lung injury. Lung macrophages are responsible for recycling damaged lipid droplets to maintain lipid homeostasis. The inflammatory response triggered by external stimuli such as cigarette smoke, bleomycin, and bacteria can interfere with this process, resulting in the formation of lipid-laden macrophages (LLMs), also known as foamy macrophages. Recent studies have highlighted the potential significance of LLM formation in a range of pulmonary diseases. Furthermore, growing evidence suggests that LLMs are present in patients suffering from various pulmonary conditions. In this review, we summarize the essential metabolic and signaling pathways driving the LLM formation in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, pulmonary fibrosis, tuberculosis, and acute lung injury.

Five new species of the genus Pholcus Walckenaer (Araneae: Pholcidae) from South Korea.

Although the high level of species diversity within the Pholcus phungiformes-group (Araneae: Pholcidae) in the Korean Peninsula has been recognized recently, taxonomic studies, including new species discovery, have not been conducted in western regions of South Korea. In this study, five additional species belonging to the Pholcus phungiformes-group discovered from Seoul and surrounding areas are described as new, viz., Pholcus seoulensis Lee Lee, sp. nov. Pholcus suraksanensis Lee Lee, sp. nov., Pholcus incheonensis Lee Lee, sp. nov., Pholcus seokmodoensis Lee Lee, sp. nov. and Pholcus chilgapsanensis Lee Lee, sp. nov. Detailed descriptions and geographic distributions are provided with accompanying photographs.