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Scott E Evans

Publications and source records attributed to Scott E Evans.

4 recordsLinked to original sources

Prophylactic Inhaled Pattern Recognition Receptor Agonists Reprogram Lung Epithelial Response and Prevent Type 2 Allergic Inflammation.

Prophylactic inhalation of the synergistic agents ODN M362 and Pam2CSK4 ("Pam2ODN") protects mice against allergic lung disease, including allergic inflammation caused by house dust mite (HDM). By preventing sensitization, Pam2ODN reduces HDM-induced eosinophilic and lymphocytic inflammation. How Pam2ODN affects interactions among lung epithelial cells, dendritic cells, and T cells to prevent eosinophilic lung inflammation remains unclear. In the present study, we show that a single inhaled dose of Pam2ODN before HDM sensitization reduces airway Th2 polarization without affecting Th1 or Treg responses. Furthermore, Pam2ODN pretreatment inhibits the recruitment of lung monocyte-derived dendritic cells (moDCs) and conventional Type 2 dendritic cells (DC2s), while preventing the HDM-induced decrease in conventional Type 1 dendritic cells (DC1s). Bulk RNA-seq of the whole lung reveals that Pam2ODN pretreatment restricts the expression of proinflammatory transcripts induced by HDM sensitization. This tolerogenic effect is also reflected at the single-cell level in lung epithelial cells, where proinflammatory transcripts, pathways, and chromatin accessibility are inhibited. These results indicate that Pam2ODN reprograms lung epithelial cells to attenuate allergen-induced Th2-promoting cytokines and DCs while maintaining the population of protective DC1s. These findings suggest a strategy to mitigate chronic allergic lung diseases.

Animals↗

Current practice in pulmonary function testing.

More than 30 million Americans have chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and asthma, with internists, pediatricians, and family physicians providing most of their medical care. Recent management guidelines for asthma and COPD recommend regular use of spirometry for the diagnosis and management of these disorders. Because of the development of easy-to-use office-based spirometers, an increasing number of physicians have ready access to spirometry. Beyond simple spirometry, various tests are available from many pulmonary function laboratories for more detailed evaluation of patients with respiratory disorders. For these reasons, all physicians who care for patients with pulmonary disease must understand basic pulmonary function testing and have a fundamental understanding of more sophisticated tests. A series of performance standards has been developed for improved accuracy and precision of pulmonary function tests. Physicians responsible for administering and interpreting pulmonary function tests, even simple spirometry, must be aware of relevant guidelines. This concise review addresses current indications for pulmonary function testing, provides an overview of the studies commonly available in modern pulmonary function laboratories, and includes comments on basic interpretation and testing standards.

Asthma↗

Pneumocystis carinii cell wall beta-glucan induces release of macrophage inflammatory protein-2 from alveolar epithelial cells via a lactosylceramide-mediated mechanism.

Infiltration of the lungs with neutrophils promotes respiratory failure during severe Pneumocystis carinii (PC) pneumonia. Recent studies have shown that alveolar epithelial cells (AECs), in addition to promoting PC attachment, also participate in lung inflammation by the release of cytokines and chemokines. Herein, we demonstrate that a PC beta-glucan rich cell wall isolate (PCBG) stimulates the release of macrophage inflammatory protein-2 (MIP-2) from isolated AECs through a lactosylceramide-dependent mechanism. The results demonstrate that MIP-2 mRNA and protein production is significantly increased at both early and late time points after PCBG challenge. Although CD11b/CD18 (Mac-1, CR3) is the most widely studied beta-glucan receptor, we demonstrate that CD11b/CD18 is not present on AECs. This study instead demonstrates that preincubation of AECs with an antibody directed against the membrane glycosphingolipid lactosylceramide (CDw17) results in a significant decrease in MIP-2 secretion. Preincubation of the anti-CDw17 antibody with solubilized lactosylceramide reverses this effect. Furthermore, incubation of AECs with inhibitors of glycosphingolipid biosynthesis, including N-butyldeoxyno jirimycin and d-threo-1-phenyl-2-decanoylamino-3-morpholino-1-propanol-HCl, also results in a significant decrease in AEC MIP-2 production following challenge with PCBG. These data demonstrate that PC beta-glucan induces significant production of MIP-2 from AECs and that CDw17 participates in the glucan-induced inflammatory signaling in lung epithelial cells during PC infection.

Animals↗