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Biomedical subjects

H J Schünemann

Publications and source records attributed to H J Schünemann.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2006

Antioxidants, oxidative stress, and pulmonary function in individuals diagnosed with asthma or COPD.

OBJECTIVE: The objective of this study was to investigate the association between antioxidant nutrients and markers of oxidative stress with pulmonary function in persons with chronic airflow limitation. DESIGN: Cross-sectional study exploring the association of antioxidant nutrients and markers of oxidative stress with forced expiratory volume in the first second (FEV1%) and forced vital capacity (FVC%). SETTING/SUBJECTS: The study data included 218 persons with chronic airflow limitation recruited randomly from the general population of Erie and Niagara counties, New York State, USA. RESULTS: After adjustment for covariates, multiple linear regression analysis showed that serum beta-cryptoxanthin, lutein/zeaxanthin, and retinol, and dietary beta-carotene, beta-cryptoxanthin, lutein/zeaxanthin, vitamin C, and lycopene were positively associated with FEV1% (P < 0.05, all associations). Serum vitamins beta-cryptoxanthin, lutein/zeaxanthin, and lycopene, and dietary beta-cryptoxanthin, beta-carotene, vitamin C, and lutein/zeaxanthin were positively associated with FVC% (P < 0.05, all associations). Erythrocytic glutathione was negatively associated with FEV1%, while plasma thiobarbituric acid-reactive substances (TBARS) were negatively associated with FVC% (P < 0.05). CONCLUSION: These results support the hypothesis that an imbalance in antioxidant/oxidant status is associated with chronic airflow limitation, and that dietary habits and/or oxidative stress play contributing roles.

Antioxidants↗
PubMed2006

Validation of a symptom diary for patients with gastro-oesophageal reflux disease.

BACKGROUND: Symptom diaries are potentially attractive but, because of concerns about patient compliance, they have had limited use in clinical trials. We assessed the validity and responsiveness of a symptom diary for patients with gastro-oesophageal reflux disease. METHODS: We included 215 patients with gastro-oesophageal reflux disease after starting treatment for 4 weeks with 40 mg esomeprazole once daily. Patients recorded whether they experienced night-time heartburn (yes/no), the severity of daytime heartburn on a scale from 1 (no heartburn) to 4 (severe heartburn) and their antacid use. Patients also completed a number of disease-specific and preference-based Health-related Quality of Life questionnaires at baseline and follow-up. RESULTS: Consistent with a priori predictions, daytime heartburn showed moderate to strong correlations with the Quality of Life in Reflux and Dyspepsia questionnaire (0.36-0.67) and four scales of symptom severity (0.36-0.70) for baseline, follow-up and change scores, but low correlations with the Standard Gamble. Responsiveness of the daytime heartburn item was excellent with a mean change from baseline to follow-up of -1.3 (95% CI -1.4 to -1.1) and a standardized response mean of 1.33 while responsiveness of the daily antacid use item was moderate (mean change scores -1.8 tablets taken, 95% CI -2.3 to -1.3 and standardized response mean of 0.64). CONCLUSIONS: The excellent psychometric properties of this simple gastro-oesophageal reflux disease diary make it an attractive measure for future trials.

Antacids↗
PubMed2005

How should COPD patients exercise during respiratory rehabilitation? Comparison of exercise modalities and intensities to treat skeletal muscle dysfunction.

BACKGROUND: Physical exercise is an important component of respiratory rehabilitation because it reverses skeletal muscle dysfunction, a clinically important manifestation of COPD associated with reduced health-related quality of life (HRQL) and survival. However, there is controversy regarding the components of the optimal exercise protocol. A study was undertaken to systematically evaluate and summarise randomised controlled trials (RCTs) comparing different exercise protocols for COPD patients. METHODS: Six electronic databases, congress proceedings and bibliographies of included studies were searched without imposing language restrictions. Two reviewers independently screened all records and extracted data on study samples, interventions and methodological characteristics of included studies. RESULTS: The methodological quality of the 15 included RCTs was low to moderate. Strength exercise led to larger improvements of HRQL than endurance exercise (weighted mean difference for Chronic Respiratory Questionnaire 0.27, 95% CI 0.02 to 0.52). Interval exercise seems to be of similar effectiveness as continuous exercise, but there are few data on clinically relevant outcomes. One small RCT which included patients with mild COPD compared the effect of high and low intensity exercise (at 80% and 40% of the maximum exercise capacity, respectively) and found larger physiological training effects from high intensity exercise. CONCLUSIONS: Strength exercise should be routinely incorporated in respiratory rehabilitation. There is insufficient evidence to recommend high intensity exercise for COPD patients and investigators should conduct larger high quality trials to evaluate exercise intensities in patients with moderate to severe COPD.

Exercise Therapy↗
PubMed2005

A randomised trial to evaluate the self-administered standardised chronic respiratory questionnaire.

The original chronic respiratory questionnaire (CRQ), one of the most widely used measures of health-related quality of life (HRQL) in chronic respiratory disease (CRD), is traditionally interviewer administered (IA) and includes an individualised dyspnoea domain. The present authors studied the impact of self-administered (SA) and standardised dyspnoea questions on CRQ measurement properties. In a factorial design multicentre trial, 177 patients with CRD (mean age 67.7 yrs; mean forced expiratory volume in one second per cent predicted 44.6%) were randomised to CRQ-IA (n = 86) or CRQ-SA (n = 91), and to initially complete the standardised or individualised items before and after respiratory rehabilitation. While maintaining validity, the CRQ-SA proved more responsive to changes in HRQL than the CRQ-IA in all domains. Compared with the standardised dyspnoea domain, the individualised dyspnoea domain indicated greater responsiveness. The correlations of baseline scores and change scores with other HRQL instruments indicated good validity of the CRQ-SA. In conclusion, self-administration and standardisation of the chronic respiratory questionnaire maintains validity and responsiveness relative to the interviewer-administered chronic respiratory questionnaire. These results challenge the assumption that interviewer-administered questionnaires are superior to self-administered questionnaires in older patients with chronic respiratory disease.

Adaptation, Physiological↗
PubMed2004

Do physicians correctly assess patient symptom severity in gastro-oesophageal reflux disease?

BACKGROUND: The accuracy of physicians' assessment of the severity of gastro-oesophageal reflux disease is unclear. AIM: To correlate physician and patient assessment of gastro-oesophageal reflux disease severity and its response to treatment. METHODS: Adult uninvestigated gastro-oesophageal reflux disease patients (n = 217) completed symptom and health-related quality of life questionnaires at baseline and after treatment with esomeprazole 40 mg p.o. daily. Pearson coefficients quantified correlations between physician assessments and patient responses. RESULTS: At baseline, the strongest correlations were heartburn severity (0.31), overall symptom severity (0.44) and a domain of the quality of life in reflux and dyspepsia questionnaire (0.31) (P < 0.001). Correlations of change with treatment were greater than baseline correlations: heartburn (0.39), overall symptoms (0.50) and global rate of change -- stomach problems (0.72, all P < 0.001). The mean difference between the physicians' assessment of change and the patients' global rating of change was 0.20 (95% confidence intervals: 0.10-0.29) with physicians overestimating benefit. CONCLUSIONS: Correlations were often significant, although weak to moderate and better with symptom severity than with health-related quality of life instruments as well as with change after therapy than at baseline. Increasing attention to health-related quality of life may help physicians better understand patients' experience. In clinical trials, treatment success should be assessed by the patient as well as the physician.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2001

The relation of serum levels of antioxidant vitamins C and E, retinol and carotenoids with pulmonary function in the general population.

Reduced pulmonary function is an important predictor of mortality in the general population, and antioxidant vitamins are thought to positively influence pulmonary function. Vitamin C, vitamin E, retinol, and carotenoids are powerful antioxidants but information about the joint relation of serum levels of these antioxidants to pulmonary function is limited. We analyzed the association of FEV(1) and FVC with serum vitamins C and E, retinol, and carotenoids (beta-cryptoxanthin, lutein/zeaxanthin, beta-carotene, and lycopene) in a cross-sectional study. The analysis was carried out in a sample of 1,616 randomly selected residents of Western New York, USA, age 35 to 79 yr and free of respiratory disease. Lung function was adjusted for height, age, sex, and race and expressed as percentage of predicted normal FEV(1) (FEV(1)%) and FVC (FVC%). Participants in the lowest quartile of each of the serum antioxidants had consistently lower FEV(1)% and FVC% than those in higher quartiles. Multiple linear regression analysis revealed significant associations of vitamin C, vitamin E, beta-cryptoxanthin, lutein/zeaxanthin, beta-carotene, and retinol with FEV(1)% when these variables were investigated individually after adjustment for other covariates (smoking status, pack-years of smoking, weight, eosinophil count, and education). When all of these antioxidant vitamins were analyzed simultaneously in a multivariate regression model, the strongest association was seen with vitamin E and beta-cryptoxanthin. Only retinol showed an independent effect on FEV(1)% after controlling for vitamin E and beta-cryptoxanthin. As for FEV(1)%, vitamin E and beta-cryptoxanthin were most strongly related to FVC% when all variables were considered in the multivariate regression model. The differences in FEV(1) associated with a reduction of one standard deviation of serum vitamin E or beta-cryptoxanthin were equivalent to the negative influence of approximately 1 to 2 yr of aging. Our findings support the hypothesis that antioxidant vitamins may play a role in respiratory health and that vitamin E and beta-cryptoxanthin appear to be stronger correlates of lung function than other antioxidant vitamins.

Adult↗
PubMed2000

Usefulness of the QTc interval in predicting myocardial ischemia in patients undergoing exercise stress testing.

Prolongation of the QTc interval during stress testing predicts myocardial ischemia with a sensitivity of 88% and a specificity of 93%. Measurement of the QTc segment should be considered as an adjunctive electrocardiographic variable in the interpretation of stress tests and is even useful in patients who are not able to achieve the age-predicted target heart rate level.

Case-Control Studies↗
PubMed2000

Short-term storage of blood samples and DNA isolation in serum separator tubes for application in epidemiological studies and clinical research.

PURPOSE: To investigate the use of a simple DNA isolation technique for application in epidemiologic studies. To analyze systematically the potential impact of lag time between blood drawing and DNA isolation and the condition of storage of blood samples on the quantity and quality of isolated DNA in large-scale epidemiologic studies. METHODS: A modified single tube DNA isolation technique was used. DNA was isolated from samples collected from six participants and processed in triplicate: a) without delay after blood drawing; b) after blood cells were stored at 4 degrees C for 7 days; c) after blood cells were stored at -70 degrees C for 7 days; and d) after storage for 7 days at -70 degrees C with addition of lysis/digestion buffer. Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and Southern blot analysis were performed to analyze the quality of the isolated DNA. RESULTS: The average amount of DNA isolated ranged from 27.0 to 71.1 microg/4.5 ml whole blood. Storage at 4 degrees C yielded, on the average, 20% less DNA than the samples processed without delay or after storage at -70 degrees C, although this difference was not statistically significant. All four conditions studied allowed isolation of highly pure DNA suitable for genetic analyses by Southern blot analysis and polymerase chain reaction. CONCLUSIONS: This pilot study suggests that storage for 7 days and at different temperatures allows isolation of high quality DNA. Using the described technique, storage of up to 7 days permits processing of large numbers of samples (50-70) in a single day, allowing for a reliable and cost-efficient way of processing in various settings. Further studies are needed to investigate the influence of long-term storage of biological specimens on DNA isolation and quality.

Blood Banks↗
PubMed2000

Markers of insulin resistance and sex steroid hormone activity in relation to breast cancer risk: a prospective analysis of abdominal adiposity, sebum production, and hirsutism (Italy).

OBJECTIVE: Insulin resistance and increased levels of serum steroids have been hypothesized to be relevant etiological factors for breast cancer. Measurements of markers of insulin resistance and elevated serum steroids may identify women at high risk for breast cancer. The present study analyzed the association of breast cancer with markers of insulin resistance and elevated serum sex steroids, abdominal adiposity, increase in sebum production and hirsutism in a case-control study nested in a prospective cohort study. METHODS: Between 1987 and 1992, 10,786 women (aged 35-69) were recruited in a prospective study on breast cancer in Italy, the ORDET study. Women with a history of cancer and on hormone therapy were excluded at baseline. At recruitment, abdominal adiposity was calculated from the ratio of waist-to-hip circumferences. Sebum production was measured on the forehead under standardized conditions using a sebumeter. Nine androgen-sensitive body areas were evaluated for hirsutism and a total hirsutism score was computed. After an average of 5.5 years of follow-up, 144 breast cancer cases were identified among the participants of the cohort. For each breast cancer case, four matched controls were randomly chosen from members of the cohort who did not develop breast cancer during the follow-up period. RESULTS: Waist-to-hip ratio was associated with breast cancer in premenopausal women: age and body mass index (BMI) adjusted relative risk (RR) for the highest tertile of waist-to-hip ratio was 2.2 [95% confidence interval (CI) 1.04-4.75], p for trend 0.03. In the analysis conducted within strata of BMI, the effect of waist-to-hip ratio was confined to the group of thinner women: RR for the highest tertile of waist-to-hip ratio was 3.4 (95% CI 1.2-9.5). Sebum production and hirsutism were associated with breast cancer among postmenopausal women. Age and BMI adjusted RRs for the upper tertiles were 2.2 (95% CI 1.1-4.6), p for trend 0.01, and 2.3 (95% CI 1.1-4.9), p for trend 0.03, for sebum and hirsutism, respectively. CONCLUSION: These results add evidence for a role of hormones and metabolic alterations in breast cancer etiology and for different relations of these risk factors with breast cancer in premenopausal and postmenopausal women.

Abdomen↗
PubMed2000

Estrogen metabolism and risk of breast cancer: a prospective study of the 2:16alpha-hydroxyestrone ratio in premenopausal and postmenopausal women.

Experimental and clinical evidence suggests that 16alpha-hydroxylated estrogen metabolites, biologically strong estrogens, are associated with breast cancer risk, while 2-hydroxylated metabolites, with lower estrogenic activity, are weakly related to this disease. This study analyzes the association of breast cancer risk with estrogen metabolism, expressed as the ratio of 2-hydroxyestrone to 16alpha-hydroxyestrone, in a prospective nested case-control study. Between 1987 and 1992, 10,786 women (ages 35-69 years) were recruited to a prospective study on breast cancer in Italy, the "Hormones and Diet in the Etiology of Breast Cancer" (ORDET) study. Women with a history of cancer and women on hormone therapy were excluded at baseline. At recruitment, overnight urine was collected from all participants and stored at -80 degrees C. After an average of 5.5 years of follow-up, 144 breast cancer cases and four matched controls for each case were identified among the participants of the cohort. Among premenopausal women, a higher ratio of 2-hydroxyestrone to 16alpha-hydroxyestrone at baseline was associated with a reduced risk of breast cancer: women in the highest quintile of the ratio had an adjusted odds ratio (OR) for breast cancer of 0.58 [95% confidence interval (CI) = 0.25-1.34]. The corresponding adjusted OR in postmenopausal women was 1.29 (95% CI = 0.53-3.10). Results of this prospective study support the hypothesis that the estrogen metabolism pathway favoring 2-hydroxylation over 16alpha-hydroxylation is associated with a reduced risk of invasive breast cancer risk in premenopausal women.

Adult↗
PubMed2000

Pulmonary function is a long-term predictor of mortality in the general population: 29-year follow-up of the Buffalo Health Study.

STUDY OBJECTIVES: Results from several studies have described a relationship between pulmonary function and both all-cause and cause-specific mortality. The purpose of this study was to investigate the predictive value of pulmonary function by gender after 29 years of follow-up. DESIGN: Prospective study with 29-year follow-up of the Buffalo Health Study cohort. PARTICIPANTS: Randomly selected sample of 554 men and 641 women, aged 20 to 89 years, from all listed households of the city of Buffalo, NY. MEASUREMENTS AND RESULTS: Baseline measurements were performed in 1960 to 1961. Pulmonary function was assessed based on FEV(1) expressed as the normal percent predicted (FEV(1)%pred). FEV(1)%pred adjusted by age, body mass index, systolic BP, education, and smoking status was inversely related to all-cause mortality in both men and women (p<0.01). A sequential survival analysis in participants who had a survival time of at least 5, 10, 15, 20, and 25 years after enrollment in the study was also performed. Except for men who survived for > 25 years, we observed a statistically significant negative association between FEV(1)%pred and all-cause mortality. FEV(1)%pred was also inversely related to ischemic heart disease (IHD) mortality. When participants were divided into quintiles of FEV(1)%pred, participants in the lowest quintile of FEV(1)%pred experienced significantly higher all-cause mortality compared with participants in the highest quintile of FEV(1)%pred. For the entire follow-up period, the adjusted hazard ratios for all-cause mortality were 2.24 (95% confidence interval [CI], 1.60 to 3.13) for men and 1. 81 (95% CI, 1.24 to 2.63) for women, respectively. Hazard ratios for death from IHD in the lowest quintile of FEV(1)%pred were 2.11 (95% CI, 1.20 to 3.71) and 1.96 (95% CI, 0.99 to 3.88) for men and women, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: These results suggest that pulmonary function is a long-term predictor for overall survival rates in both genders and could be used as a tool in general health assessment.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1998

Modulation of laminin integrin receptors in the postnatal and adult rat lung.

Recent studies have shown that type II pneumocytes, at birth and day 3 postnatally, have a diffuse distribution and localize at alveolar 'corners' between 3 and 7 days. Since alpha 3 beta 1 and alpha 6 beta 1 are laminin-binding receptors that are well expressed by rat type II alveolar epithelial cells, we postulated that they may play a role in the localization of the cells in the alveolus. To begin the evaluation of this hypothesis, we studied the temporal and spatial expression of the alpha 3, alpha 6, and beta 1 integrin subunit protein and mRNA in whole rat lungs during postnatal development by immunofluorescence, confocal microscopy, and Northern blot analysis. The temporal expression of proteins analyzed by immunochemistry, with integrin subunit specific antibodies, increased during the 3- to 7-day postnatal period and in adult lungs. Densitometric values of the alpha 3, alpha 6, and beta 1 mRNA expression, normalized to 28S rRNA, quadrupled from day 1 to day 3 postnatally. The mRNA expression of different integrin chains was elevated 1.5- to threefold from days 5 to 7 postnatally compared to day 1 levels. The alpha 3 and alpha 6 integrin subunit mRNA decreased to newborn levels in adult lungs, whereas the beta 1 integrin mRNA in adult lungs was expressed at approximately 50% of its level in newborn lungs. We postulate that the increases in alpha 3, alpha 6, and beta 1 integrin mRNA expression during the early neonatal period may be important for the spatial distribution of type II pneumocytes.

Aging↗
PubMed1998

Pseudo-rearrangement of the MLL gene at chromosome 11q23: a cautionary note on genotype analysis of leukaemia patients.

AIMS: The MLL gene on chromosome 11q23 is frequently disrupted by chromosomal translocations in association with haematological malignancies. Recently, a specific site within the 8.3 kb MLL break-point cluster region that is cleaved during the early stages of apoptosis has been identified. Because MLL gene rearrangements are used to identify patients with high risk leukaemia, it was the aim of this study to determine whether this DNA cleavage event could be triggered in diagnostic bone marrow samples solely through ex vivo incubation at room temperature. METHODS: Pretreatment bone marrow samples were collected from six paediatric leukaemia patients. Genomic DNA for Southern blot analysis of MLL gene rearrangements was isolated immediately after samples were obtained and compared to genomic DNA isolated after incubation of specimens for 24-60 hours at room temperature, simulating delays in processing that might occur when samples are delivered to reference laboratories. In addition, cryopreserved samples from 70 paediatric leukaemia patients were screened for evidence of site specific MLL cleavage. RESULTS: After ex vivo incubation of bone marrow samples, site specific MLL cleavage resulting in a pseudo-rearrangement of the MLL gene was detected in two of six patients. In addition, a third patient with a similar MLL pseudo-rearrangement in cryopreserved cells was identified. CONCLUSIONS: Pseudo-rearrangement of the MLL gene at chromosome 11q23 was caused by ex vivo incubation of bone marrow samples. This novel phenomenon, which could lead to misclassification of leukaemia patients, might also be of importance for genotype analysis by Southern blotting at other loci.

Blotting, Southern↗
PubMed1998

Alcohol consumption and total estradiol in premenopausal women.

The present paper analyzes the relation between alcohol intake and serum total estradiol in premenopausal women while attempting to control or reduce several sources of variability of serum estradiol. Sixty premenopausal women were recruited, and alcohol intake was estimated by a semiquantitative questionnaire. Interviews, anthropometric measurements, and blood drawings (after overnight fasting) were conducted twice, 1 year apart. Both blood samples were obtained on the same day of the luteal phase of the cycle, in the same month and in the same hour and minute of the day. Samples from the first drawing were stored at -80 degrees C. Serum from both drawings was assayed simultaneously and in blind fashion. A significant association between alcohol intake and estradiol was found when estradiol was averaged across the two visits (Spearman's r = 0.29; P < 0.05). To control for intraindividual variability of estradiol over time, participants were then divided into tertiles of hormone distribution for each of the two sets of measurements and classified based on their consistency in estradiol across the two visits. Women showing consistently high estradiol levels at both visits were characterized by a significantly higher alcohol intake (92.8 g/week) in comparison with those showing consistently low estradiol at both visits (31.6 g/week). Furthermore, the prevalence of drinkers in the group with consistently high estradiol was significantly higher than in the group with consistently low estradiol. The present report indicates that drinkers seem to be characterized by consistently higher estradiol than nondrinkers, and that when the variability of estradiol in premenopause is considered, it is possible to identify a relationship between alcohol intake and estradiol.

Adult↗
PubMed1997

Oxidative stress and lung function.

It has been suggested that lung function can be altered by both free radical and oxidant exposure, while antioxidant vitamin intake is positively related to lung function. However, the information on the relation of blood levels of oxidants and antioxidants to lung function is sparse. The present cross-sectional study, conducted from September 1995 to May 1996, analyzes the association between lung function measured as forced expiratory volume in 1 second (FEV1) with 1) levels of thiobarbituric acid-reactive substances in plasma (p-TBARS) and in low and very low density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL cholesterol/VLDL cholesterol-TBARS) as indicators of lipid peroxidation and 2) compounds with antioxidant activity, erythrocytic glutathione, plasma glutathione peroxidase, trolox equivalent antioxidant capacity, and serum bilirubin, which may protect against lipid peroxidation. The analysis was carried out in 132 nonsmoking subjects aged 37-73 years who were randomly selected from the residents of Erie and Niagara counties, New York. FEV1 in percent of the predicted value (FEV1%) was negatively and statistical significantly associated with p-TBARS (r = -0.19). A negative association with borderline statistical significance was observed between FEV1% with low density lipoprotein cholesterol/very low density lipoprotein cholesterol-TBARS (r = -0.16) and glutathione (r = -0.16), while FEV1% was positively related to serum bilirubin (r = 0.15). Participants in the lowest quartile of FEV1% showed significantly higher levels of p-TBARS (p = 0.02) and lower levels of bilirubin (p = 0.04) than did those in the highest quartile. Our results suggest that increased lipid peroxidation is associated with pulmonary airway narrowing in the general population.

Adult↗
PubMed1996

Induction of interleukin-1 and interleukin-8 mRNAs and proteins by TGF beta 1 in rat lung alveolar epithelial cells.

The transforming growth factor-beta (TGF-beta) has been shown to increase in lung injury and in fibrotic states of the lung. In the current study, we sought to investigate whether TGF beta 1 induced the expression of IL-1 alpha and IL-8 in rat alveolar epithelial cells. We evaluated TGF beta 1, IL-1 alpha, and IL-8 expression by immunofluorescence in silica-injured and saline-treated control rat lungs. Antibodies to IL-1 alpha, IL-8, and TGF beta 1 showed intense staining in silica-injured lungs as compared to saline-instilled lungs. Primary isolated type II cells from silica-injured lungs showed increased expression of IL-1 alpha as compared to saline-instilled lungs. To evaluate the effects of TGF beta 1, we treated an immortalized rat type II cell-derived cell line (LM5) with 100 pg/ml of TGF beta 1 in serum-free medium for 0-24 hours and analyzed the expression of IL-1 alpha and IL-8 mRNAs and proteins using semiquantitative RT-PCR, Northern blot analysis, Western blot analysis, and immunohistochemistry. Densitometric analysis of Northern blots showed modest constitutive expression of IL-1 alpha gene in untreated control LM5 cells. TGF beta 1 treatment resulted in an increase in IL-1 alpha mRNA, that reached maximum levels (4-fold) by 2 hours and remained elevated for 4-16 hours, with a subsequent decline by 24 hours. Similarly, Northern blot and RT-PCR analysis demonstrated that TGF beta 1 treatment resulted in maximum induction of IL-8 mRNA (6- 8.5-fold) within 1-4 hours. The levels remained elevated for up to 24 hours afterwards. Western blot analysis results further confirmed the expression of both IL-1 alpha and IL-8 proteins by LM5 cells. TGF beta 1 treatment resulted in increased expression of both IL-1 alpha and IL-8 proteins. Immunofluorescence studies demonstrated increased staining of IL-1 alpha by TGF beta 1 as compared to untreated cells. These results suggest that TGF beta 1 may regulate IL-1 alpha and IL-8 expression in alveolar epithelial cells and contribute to polymorphonuclear leukocyte recruitment and lung injury in clinical states with increased TGF beta 1.

Animals↗