Increased levels of bombesin-like peptides in the lower respiratory tract of asymptomatic cigarette smokers.

Bombesin-related peptides are growth factors for a variety of cells, including normal human bronchial epithelial cells. An ELISA for bombesin-like peptides (BLP) has been devised using the MAb BBC353, which is specific for the biologically active carboxy-terminal fragment shared by all known BLP. Using this ELISA, we measured bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) fluid levels of BLP in normal cigarette smokers (n = 15) and normal nonsmokers (n = 18). Smokers' BAL fluid contained increased levels of BLP, whether expressed in terms of BAL fluid volume (P = 0.0001) or protein content (P less than 0.05). BLP levels did not correlate with any cellular constituent in the BAL fluid but immunostaining of lung tissue with BBC353 revealed an intense specific staining of neuroendocrine cells, implying these as a potential source. Two peaks of bombesin-like immunoreactivity were purified using sequential reverse phase and gel filtration HPLC. Both BLP have apparent molecular weights similar to gastrin-releasing peptide on gel filtration HPLC analysis. However, the amino acid composition of these BLP is different from that of gastrin-releasing peptide or neuromedin B, the only known mammalian forms of BLP, suggesting either incomplete purification or novel peptides. Sequence analysis could not be performed due to blocking groups at the amino terminus of these peptides. Our data demonstrate that cigarette smoking is associated with increased levels of pulmonary BLP and imply a potential role for these neuropeptides in the lung's response to tobacco smoke.

Pulmonary deposition and clearance of aerosolized alpha-1-proteinase inhibitor administered to dogs and to sheep.

Augmentation of lung antiprotease levels may be an important therapeutic intervention in the prevention of pulmonary emphysema. We have administered aerosols of plasma-derived human alpha 1 proteinase inhibitor (A1PI) to the lungs of dogs and sheep to investigate (a) delivery of the protein to the distal air spaces of the lung; (b) maintenance of functional activity of the protein; and (c) flux of the protein across the components of the alveolar-capillary membrane. A1PI (26.4 mg/kg body weight) was administered as an aerosol to anesthetized animals; sheep were prepared for the chronic collection of lung lymph. Immunoperoxidase staining of lung tissue obtained 2 h after administration of A1PI demonstrated the presence of human A1PI on the surface of alveoli and distal bronchioles. Bronchoalveolar lavage fluid recovered at intervals after A1PI administration demonstrated time-dependent elevations of human A1PI levels with augmentation of lavage fluid antielastase activity in proportion to the content of human A1PI. Using radiolabeled A1PI as a tracer, we found that 32% of the aerosol was retained in the animals' lungs. Measurements of the rate of loss of A1PI from the lung and of the rate of appearance of human A1PI in plasma resulted in a calculated permeability of the alveolar-capillary membrane to A1PI of 3.49-6.39 X 10(-10) cm/s. Experiments using instrumented sheep allowed independent calculation of endothelial permeability to A1PI of 122-236 X 10(-10) cm/s and calculation of epithelial permeability of 4.70-4.81 X 10(-10) cm/s. Modeling of aerosol delivery of A1PI to humans using the results of these studies predicts that the ratio of plasma/alveolar levels of delivered A1PI will be 0.024, and that aerosolization of 175 mg A1PI/d will result in an A1PI alveolar fluid level of 1.0 mg/ml. Aerosol administration of A1PI may provide an efficient method of augmenting alveolar antiprotease levels.

Recombinant DNA-produced alpha 1-antitrypsin administered by aerosol augments lower respiratory tract antineutrophil elastase defenses in individuals with alpha 1-antitrypsin deficiency.

Alpha 1-Antitrypsin (alpha 1AT) deficiency is characterized by insufficient amounts of alpha 1AT to protect the lower respiratory tract from neutrophil elastase, resulting in emphysema. Yeast-produced recombinant alpha 1AT (rAAT) has normal antielastase function but is associated with high renal clearance, thus obviating chronic intravenous administration. As an alternative, we evaluated aerosol administration of rAAT to alpha 1AT-deficient individuals. After aerosol administration of single doses of 10-200 mg of rAAT, epithelial lining fluid (ELF) alpha 1AT antineutrophil elastase defenses were augmented in proportion to the dose of rAAT administered. ELF alpha 1AT levels and antineutrophil elastase capacity 4 h after 200 mg rAAT aerosol were increased 40-fold over preaerosol levels, and were fivefold increased over baseline at 24 h after aerosol administration. rAAT was detectable in serum after aerosol, indicating that the lower respiratory tract epithelium may be permeable to rAAT, and that aerosolized rAAT is capable of gaining access to lung interstitium. No adverse clinical effects were noted. These observations demonstrate that aerosol administration of rAAT is safe and results in significant augmentation of lung antineutrophil elastase defenses, suggesting this method is a feasible approach to therapy. Because this approach is clinically unproven, further studies will be necessary to establish the long-term clinical efficacy of aerosol therapy in alpha 1AT deficiency.

Local abnormalities in coagulation and fibrinolytic pathways predispose to alveolar fibrin deposition in the adult respiratory distress syndrome.

To determine the possible mechanism(s) promoting alveolar fibrin deposition in the adult respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS), we investigated the initiation and regulation of both fibrinolysis and coagulation from patients with ARDS (n = 14), at risk for ARDS (n = 5), and with interstitial lung diseases (ILD) (n = 8), and normal healthy individuals (n = 13). Bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) extrinsic pathway inhibitor activity was increased in ARDS BAL compared with patients at risk for ARDS (P = 0.0146) or normal controls (P = 0.0013) but tissue factor-factor VII procoagulant activity was significantly increased in ARDS BAL compared with all other groups (P less than 0.001). Fibrinolytic activity was not detectable in BAL of 10 of the 14 patients with ARDS and low levels of activity were found in BAL of the other four ARDS patients. Depressed fibrinolysis in ARDS BAL was not due to local insufficiency of plasminogen; rather, there was inhibition of both plasmin and plasminogen activator. Plasminogen activator inhibitor 1 was variably detected and low levels of plasminogen activator inhibitor 2 were found in two ARDS BAL samples, but plasminogen activator inhibitor 2 was otherwise undetectable. ARDS BAL antiplasmin activity was, in part, due to alpha 2-antiplasmin. We conclude that abnormalities that result in enhanced coagulation and depressed fibrinolysis, thereby predisposing to alveolar fibrin deposition, occur in the alveolar lining fluids from patients with ARDS.

Antioxidant macromolecules in the epithelial lining fluid of the normal human lower respiratory tract.

We hypothesized that the alveolar structures may contain extracellular macromolecules with antioxidant properties to defend against oxidants. To evaluate this 51Cr-labeled human lung fibroblasts (HFL-1) and cat lung epithelial cells (AKD) were exposed to a H2O2-generating system and alveolar epithelial lining fluid (ELF) from healthy nonsmokers was tested for its ability to protect the lung cells from H2O2-mediated injury. The ELF provided marked antioxidant protection, with most from a H2O-soluble fraction in the 100-300-kD range. Plasma proteins with anti-H2O2 properties were in insufficient concentrations to provide the antioxidant protection observed. However, catalase, a normal intracellular antioxidant, was present in sufficient concentration to account for most of the observed anti-H2O2 properties of ELF. Depletion of ELF with an anticatalase antibody abolished the anti-H2O2 macromolecular defenses of ELF. Since catalase is not normally released by cells, a likely explanation for its presence in high concentrations in normal ELF is that it is released by lung inflammatory and parenchymal cells onto the epithelial surface of the lower respiratory tract during their normal turnover and collects there due to the slow turnover of ELF. It is likely that catalase in the ELF of normal individuals plays a role in protecting lung parenchymal cells against oxidants present in the extracellular milieu.

Alveolar fluid neutrophil elastase activity in the adult respiratory distress syndrome is complexed to alpha-2-macroglobulin.

We characterized the elastase and antielastase activity of the alveolar fluid of seven patients with the adult respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) and thirteen normal volunteers. Alpha-1-antitrypsin (A1AT) concentrations were 60-fold higher in ARDS as compared to normal lavage fluid (2,140 +/- 498 nM; 36.1 +/- 4.2 nM, respectively). ARDS fluid antineutrophil elastase activity was also considerably higher than that of normals (979 +/- 204 nM; 31.3 +/- 2.9 nM, respectively). Despite the antineutrophil elastase excess, 5 of 7 ARDS lavage samples contained elastase activity (mean, 6.1 +/- 2.4 pM) as assayed using low-molecular-mass substrate, while only 1 of 13 normal subjects had detectable elastase activity (0.2 pM) (P less than 0.01, compared with ARDS). That this activity was due to alpha-2-macroglobulin (A2MG)-complexed neutrophil elastase was evidenced by (a) the Sephadex G-75 elution profile; (b) the inactivity against insoluble [3H]elastin; (c) the inhibitory profile with phenylmethylsulfonyl fluoride, methoxy-succinyl-alanyl-alanyl-prolyl-valyl-chloromethylketone, ethylene diamine tetraacetic acid, and A1AT; and (d) the immobilization by A2MG antibody bound to polystyrene plates. Furthermore, in agreement with the predicted affinity of A1AT and A2MG for neutrophil elastase, the ratio of A2MG to A1AT in the fluid (0.57%) coincided with the ratio of the A2MG- to A1AT-complexed elastase (0.36%). These findings suggest that the net lung protease-antiprotease balance in ARDS is shifted largely in favor of the antiproteases (chiefly A1AT), and that the antiproteases, A1AT and A2MG, have similar affinities for neutrophil elastase in vivo.

Complement receptor expression on neutrophils at an inflammatory site, the Pseudomonas-infected lung in cystic fibrosis.

Activation of human neutrophils (PMN) is accompanied by rapid upregulation of CR1, the C3b receptor, and CR3, the iC3b receptor, which also serves as the PMN's major adherence protein. This is necessary for migration and phagocytosis, but the extent of expression of these proteins on PMN at inflammatory sites has not been determined. We used monoclonal antibodies and flow cytometry to assess CR1 and CR3 expression on PMN in bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) fluid of cystic fibrosis (CF) patients chronically infected with pseudomonas and in sterile joint fluid of arthritis patients. Resting peripheral blood PMN from these patients and normals expressed similar low levels of CR1 and CR3, and the patients' PMN increased CR1 and CR3 expression normally when stimulated in vitro. CR3 expression on CF BAL PMN was 90 +/- 12% of that on the same patient's blood cells stimulated in vitro with FMLP. In contrast, CR1 expression on BAL PMN was only 27 +/- 8% of that on stimulated blood cells. Similar results were obtained for joint PMN. This pattern could be reproduced in vitro by treating FMLP-stimulated blood cells with BAL supernatants or with pseudomonas or PMN elastase. The serine protease inhibitors, PMSF and alpha 1-antitrypsin prevented the lavage supernatant from reducing CR1 expression, while metalloprotease inhibitors had no effect. Treatment of PMN with elastase in vitro decrease their ability to kill opsonized Pseudomonas aeruginosa. These results suggest that PMN at inflammatory sites have maximally upregulated expression of their complement receptors, but that CR1 is then cleaved by proteolysis in situ. Although not related to the basic defect in CF, this may interfere with efficient phagocytosis and contribute to the CF patient's inability to eradicate chronic lung infection.

Effects of leukotriene B4 in the human lung. Recruitment of neutrophils into the alveolar spaces without a change in protein permeability.

Leukotriene B4 (LTB4) is a major product of human alveolar macrophages and has potent chemotactic activity for neutrophils (PMN) in vitro. To evaluate the effects of LTB4 in the normal human lung, we instilled LTB4 (5 X 10(-7)M, 10 ml) into a subsegment of the right middle lobe and 0.9% NaCl (10 ml) into a subsegment of the lingula using a fiberoptic bronchoscope in 12 healthy human volunteers. 4 h later, we performed bronchoalveolar lavage of the same subsegments. Compared with the NaCl instillation, LTB4 caused a large increase in lavage total cells (NaCl = 6.8 +/- 1.0 X 10(6) vs. LTB4 = 26.4 +/- 5.0 X 10(6), P less than 0.01), most of which were PMN (NaCl = 12.2 +/- 4.6% vs. LTB4 = 55.7 +/- 6.0%, P less than 0.001). In contrast, there was only a small increase in lavage total protein, and the lavage total protein correlated weakly with lavage total cells and PMN. The production of superoxide anion by the lavage PMN in response to phorbol myristate acetate was similar to that of peripheral blood PMN. The migration of lavage PMN was normal toward the chemotactic peptide FMLP, but reduced toward LTB4 and zymosan-activated human serum. Morphometric analysis using transmission electron microscopy indicated a selective loss of small granules in the lung neutrophils as compared with peripheral blood neutrophils. The data indicate that in the normal human lung, LTB4 can recruit active PMN into the airspaces without causing a significant change in the protein permeability of the epithelial barrier.

Transfer of phospholipids by a protein fraction obtained from canine pulmonary lavage.

Surfactant phospholipid exists in multicompartment pools within the subphase of the lung. Movement among these pools and back into type II alveolar cells may be catalyzed by a phospholipid transfer protein resident in the subphase. We demonstrate here that a protein fraction obtained from canine lung lavage catalyzes the intermembrane transfer of all the major surfactant phospholipids. The protein is probably not derived from serum and is unrelated to surfactant proteins that have already been described.

Reutilization of surfactant phosphatidylglycerol and lysophosphatidylcholine by adult rabbits.

Adult rabbits reutilize the phosphatidylcholine (PC) of surfactant much less efficiently than developing rabbits (22% vs. 95%). Comparisons of reutilization efficiency of other components of surfactant in adult rabbits have not been determined. We injected adult rabbits intratracheally with [3H]dipalmitoylphosphatidylcholine (DPPG) mixed with [14C]lysophosphatidylcholine (lysoPC) and natural surfactant or [14C]DPPC mixed with [3H]dipalmitoylphosphatidylglycerol (DPPG) and natural surfactant. Recovery in the alveolar wash and lamellar bodies of labelled DPPC, lysoPC and DPPG was determined at different times after injection. By plotting the ratio of [3H]DPPG to [14C]DPPC in the alveolar wash versus time after injection we found that phosphatidylglycerol was reutilized with an efficiency of only 0-7% which was much less than the reutilization of PC in these animals. At early times after injection, adult rabbits injected with [14C]lysoPC had a ratio of [14C]PC in their alveolar wash to lamellar bodies that was larger than 1.0. By comparison, 3-day old rabbits injected intratracheally with [14C]lysoPC had a ratio of [14C]PC in alveolar wash to lamellar bodies less than 1.0 at the earliest times measurable. Thus adult rabbits demonstrate a pathway for accumulation of PC in their alveolar space prior to its appearance in lamellar bodies. This was not detected in developing rabbits. As in developing rabbits, adult rabbits reutilize the phosphatidylglycerol of surfactant less efficiently than the PC of surfactant.

Comparison between intra- and extracellular surfactant in respiratory distress induced by oleic acid.

The present study compares the phospholipid distribution and protein content in bronchoalveolar lavage, purified extracellular surfactant and lamellar bodies isolated from rabbits killed at intervals of 2.5, 12 and 24 h after oleic acid administration. The data suggest that the alteration of pulmonary surfactant could be partially due to the type II cell response to the injury.

Prostaglandin E2 in the lung lavage fluid of premature newborns before and after surgical or medical closure of a patent ductus arteriosus.

To analyze the role of prostaglandin E2 in maintaining ductal patency in premature newborns, we measured the PGE2 concentration in the lung lavage fluid of nine patients within 24 h before and 4-8 h after surgical ligation of a patent ductus arteriosus and in two patients before and after closure of the ductus following intravenous indomethacin. The concentration of PGE2 ranged from 240 to 3770 pg/ml (mean 1666 +/- 1256 pg/ml) before operative intervention and show a significant decrease to 0-300 pg/ml (mean 93 +/- 106 pg/ml, P less than 0.001, Student's two-tailed t-test) within a few hours after ligation of the ductus arteriosus. The same significant decrease could be seen in two patients with successful indomethacin therapy (0.25 mg/kg in three doses/day) with concomitant ductus closure. In contrast, when indomethacin was given in a reduced dose (0.1 mg/kg in three doses/day), only a slight effect on PGE2 synthesis could be seen without closure of ductus arteriosus. We suggest that the fall of PGE2 levels in lung lavage fluid reflects the local synthesis in the ductus arteriosus itself and is responsible for the decrease induced by surgical ligation or pharmacological inhibition by indomethacin.

Clinical utility of bronchoalveolar lavage in a general hospital.

Although bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) performed through a fiberoptic bronchoscope is a valuable research tool, its clinical utility has been established in only two specific populations-the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome and immunosuppressed hosts with diffuse pulmonary infiltrates. We questioned whether BAL would be helpful in decision making in a general hospital setting. Eighteen patients, none of whom had the combination of immunosuppression and diffuse roentgenographic infiltrates and none of whom had acquired immunodeficiency syndrome, underwent BAL without any complications. The BAL fluid was analyzed in a hospital clinical laboratory using only stains that are generally used for bronchial washings. Retrospective analysis showed that in 9 cases (50%), the BAL analysis resulted in a significant alteration of therapy that would not have occurred using bronchial washings alone. Therefore, it appears that BAL can be safely performed in a general hospital on various patient populations, and that analysis in a nonresearch laboratory can yield clinically useful results.

Hydrophobic 3.7 kDa surfactant polypeptide: structural characterization of the human and bovine forms.

The human and bovine forms of the hydrophobic 3.7 kDa surfactant polypeptide have been structurally analyzed. The polypeptide is essentially inert to enzymatic proteolysis, and methods for analysis include peptide handling in organic solvents and fragment generation by limited acid hydrolysis. The molecule exhibits N-terminal trimming, and the relative abundance of the different starting positions varies both among species and between adult and fetal forms of the surfactant polypeptide. The bovine major form is one residue shorter than the mature 35-residue human molecule. Comparison of the porcine, human and bovine polypeptides reveals a conserved hydrophobic middle/C-terminal segment and a variable hydrophilic N-terminal part.

Nutritional changes in nonhuman primates during mechanical ventilation.

To characterize the baseline nutritional changes occurring in healthy baboons receiving an acute lung injury, we prospectively evaluated serial nutritional changes in eight adult baboons that received oleic acid (0.08 mL/kg) and then required mechanical ventilation for a period of 8 d. The animals were given hypocaloric feeding. Nutritional assessment included the measurement of changes in muscle mass and changes in visceral protein concentration and plasma lipids. Both serum protein and albumin concentrations decreased for 3 d after mechanical ventilation began but then remained stable. The animals exhibited a marked increase in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) protein concentrations after receiving oleic acid. We conclude that previously healthy baboons receiving only dextrose infusion during mechanical ventilation have marked decreases in serum albumin occurring after the lung injury. Decreases in albumin occur very early and may represent pooling of albumin in the lung after the oleic acid injury.

An assay for the assessment of lipocortin 1 levels in human lung lavage fluid.

The physiological function of the lipocortins, proteins which are thought to be glucocorticoid-regulated, is unclear. An improved assay for lipocortins might help to elucidate their role. A rapid and specific sandwich enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) for lipocortin 1 with a working range of 1-2000 ng/ml and an interrun coefficient of variation of less than 10% is described and used in this pilot study to quantify human lipocortin 1 for the first time in acellular bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF), and in media conditioned by BAL cells, from control patients and those with pulmonary sarcoidosis. Using this assay a statistically significant relationship, not previously observed in man, has been demonstrated between concentrations of lipocortin 1/ml of BALF and serum cortisol levels (n = 10, rs = 0.6939, P less than 0.05). Although lipocortin 1 levels in acellular BALF were the same in control and sarcoid patients, significantly more lipocortin 1 was released from sarcoid BAL cells in culture (median 21.6, range 8.1-45.4 ng lipocortin/10(6) cells/h in culture) than from control cells (2.5, 1.5-7.6 ng lipocortin/10(6) cells/h in culture). The possible clinical significance of these data is discussed, but remains to be established.

Diffuse alveolar hemorrhage in autologous bone marrow transplant recipients.

PURPOSE: The purpose of our work was to evaluate pulmonary complications in autologous bone marrow transplant recipients. PATIENTS AND METHODS: A total of 141 consecutive autologous bone marrow transplant recipients were evaluated. In 29 patients, a clinical syndrome characterized by progressive dyspnea, hypoxia, cough, diffuse consolidation on chest roentgenography, and characteristic bronchoalveolar lavage findings developed over one to seven days. RESULTS: In 29 patients, bronchoalveolar lavage performed by sequential instillation and aspiration of 20-ml aliquots of normal saline resulted in recovered lavage fluid that became progressively bloodier with each recovered aliquot. Autopsy and bronchoalveolar lavage in these patients revealed no pathogens that accounted for the clinical findings. Since the later aliquots sample predominantly alveolar material, this syndrome was termed diffuse alveolar hemorrhage (DAH). DAH was associated with a high inpatient mortality rate (23 of 29 died versus 14 of 112 without DAH, p less than 0.001) and was associated with age over 40 years, solid malignancies, high fevers, severe mucositis, white blood cell recovery, and renal insufficiency (p less than 0.05, compared with patients without DAH). However, DAH was not associated with prolonged prothrombin or partial thromboplastin times or decreased platelet counts compared with patients without DAH. CONCLUSION: DAH is a frequent cause of respiratory compromise and a major cause of mortality in autologous bone marrow transplant recipients.

Preclinical evaluation of alpha-1-proteinase inhibitor. Pharmacokinetics and safety studies.

To assess the pharmacodynamics and safety of alpha-1-proteinase inhibitor (human) (A1PI) isolated from pooled human plasma, a series of animal studies was conducted. Using both unlabeled and 125I-labeled A1PI (highly purified), plasma residence time and tissue distribution were determined in rabbits. A catabolic half-life of 48.5 hours was obtained for the labeled material, which agreed well with the antigenic decay (35.5 hours), measured with a specific enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, and the functional activity decay (38.1 hours), measured antigenically by the ability of resident human A1PI to complex with human neutrophil elastase. No unusual tissue distribution was observed at the first, 24th, or 168th hour of sacrifice. Cynomolgous monkeys received infusions of labeled A1PI and a catabolic half-life of 55.45 hours was obtained; infusion of unlabeled material yielded anticipated plasma recovery and a significant increment in A1PI in bronchial-alveolar lavage fluid, both antigenically and functionally determined. Safety studies assessing acute physiologic response and both acute and subacute toxicity presented no significant adverse effects. We conclude that A1PI (human) presents normal pharmacodynamics and safety and is therefore associated with a wide margin of safety for the intended clinical applications.

Production and administration to dogs of aerosols of alpha-1-proteinase inhibitor.

The feasibility of aerosol administration of alpha-1-proteinase inhibitor (human) (A1PI) was assessed. Of three different methods of aerosolizing A1PI that were evaluated, an ultrasonic nebulizer was found to be best suited to the present purpose, producing particles of a size that allowed them to reach the distal air spaces of the lung and that retained specific A1PI anti-elastase activity. Administration of 20 mg/kg of A1PI and 150 microCi of 131iodine-A1PI to three dogs was accomplished without complications. Gamma camera scans documented a relatively homogenous distribution throughout the lungs. Bronchial lavage fluid that was recovered from the lungs of the dogs six hours after administration contained large amounts of human A1PI and showed a proportional elevation of anti-elastase activity. There was no evidence of acute toxicity.

Intravenous administration of alpha-1-proteinase inhibitor in patients of PiZ and PiM phenotype. Preliminary report.

Nine patients with moderate pulmonary emphysema, six of PiZ phenotype and three of PiM phenotype, have received a single intravenous infusion of alpha-1-proteinase inhibitor (human) (A1PI), in a dose of 60 mg/kg over a 30-minute period. They also received a tracer dose (300 microCi) of 131I-labeled A1PI. No active or passive immunization against hepatitis was given. No acute toxicity was observed. Compared with baseline data, significant elevations of serum A1PI (measured both antigenically and as anti-elastase activity) occurred, with a serum half-life approximating 110 hours. Bronchoalveolar lavage fluid, obtained 48 hours after infusion, reflected a significant increase in A1PI concentration versus baseline bronchoalveolar lavage fluid values. Serial gamma camera images of the lungs confirmed persistence of enhanced lung radioactivity for several days. Urinary desmosine excretion did not change following A1PI infusion. During the period of follow-up thus far, no patient has had chronic toxicity, results of liver function tests have been stable, and there has been no development of hepatitis B antigen or antibodies to hepatitis B surface or core antigens.