Effect of oral glycine on the clinical, spirometric and inflammatory status in subjects with cystic fibrosis: a pilot randomized trial.

BACKGROUND: Patients with cystic fibrosis (CF) have airway inflammation that contributes to symptoms and to pulmonary function derangement. Current drugs used to diminish airway inflammation improve the clinical and spirometric status of patients with CF, but their use is limited due to their undesired side effects, for example, glucose intolerance, growth retardation, and cataracts with corticosteroids, gastrointestinal toxicity with ibuprofen, and macrolide resistance with azythromycin. Glycine is known to decrease activation of inflammatory cells, including alveolar macrophages and neutrophils, and is relatively inexpensive, palatable, and virtually devoid of untoward effects. These features make glycine a good candidate for antiinflammatory treatment of CF. Thus, we aimed to explore whether glycine can exert a beneficial effect in a population of patients with CF. METHODS: This was a randomized, double blinded, cross-over pilot clinical trial. Subjects with CF received, in random order, oral glycine (0.5 g/kg/day, dissolved in any liquid) and placebo (glass sugar), each during 8 weeks with an intermediate 2-week wash-out period. RESULTS: Thirteen subjects aged 6-23 years, 8 females, completed the two arms of the study. As compared with placebo, after glycine intake patients had better symptom questionnaire scores (p = 0.02), mainly regarding sputum features and dyspnea. While spirometric variables tended to decline during placebo intake, they remained stable or even increased during glycine treatment (p = 0.04 to p = 0.003). In this context, FEV1 declined 8.6% after placebo and increased 9.7% at the end of the glycine period. Pulse oximetry improved after glycine intake (p = 0.04 vs. placebo). TNF-α in serum and IL-6 and G-CSF in sputum tended to decline at the end of the glycine period (p = 0.061, p = 0.068 and p = 0.04, respectively, vs placebo). Glycine was remarkably well tolerated. CONCLUSIONS: The clinical, spirometric and inflammatory status of subjects with CF improved after just 8 weeks of glycine intake, suggesting that this amino acid might constitute a novel therapeutic tool for these patients. Thus, further studies are warranted. TRIAL REGISTRATION: www.clinicaltrials.gov , registration number: NCT01417481 , date of registration: March 12, 2012.

Neumonía por Chlamydia trachomatis, revisión de la literatura: a propósito de un caso / Pneumonia caused by chlamydia trachomatis: report of a case and review of the literature

Presentamos el caso de un lactante con neumopatía crónica cuya madre tuvo leucorrea en último trimestre del embarazo y posteriormente al parto. El ejemplo de pruebas rápidas y específicas para la detección del antígeno mediante técnicas de ELISA e inmunofluorescencia directa, tanto de las secreciones bronquiales de la paciente como en las cervicovaginales de la madre, permitió diagnosticar neumonía por Chlamydia trachomatis adquirida al momento del nacimiento. Se empleó claritromicina durante 14 días consecutivos, y se obtuvo mejoría clínica con erradicación de la bacteria de la vía aérea de la paciente. Es el primer caso informado en México de neumonía por Chlamydia trachomatis tratado con éxito con claritromicina. El seguimiento de la paciente permitió documentar cuadros leves de hiperreactividad bronquial