PTPRH Alleviates Airway Obstruction and Th2 Inflammation in Asthma as a Protective Factor.

PURPOSE: PTPRH inhibits EGFR activity directly in cancer patients and activated EGFR induces goblet cell hyperplasia and mucus hypersecretion in asthma. However, the function of PTPRH in asthma remains unknown. The purpose of this study was to access the association of PTPRH with asthma and its underlying mechanism. PATIENTS AND METHODS: We examined the PTPRH level in asthma patients (n = 108) and healthy controls (n = 35), and analyzed the correlations between PTPRH and asthma-related indicators. Human bronchial epithelial cell (HBECs) transfected with PTPRH and asthma mouse model were set up to investigate the function of PTPRH. RESULTS: The expression of PTPRH was significantly increased and correlated with pulmonary function parameters, including airway obstruction, and T-helper2 (Th2) associated markers in asthma patients. PTPRH increased in the house dust mite (HDM)-induced asthmatic mice, while Th2 airway inflammation and Muc5ac suppressed when treated with PTPRH. Accordingly, PTPRH expression was markedly increased in IL-13-stimulated HBECs but PTPRH over-expression suppressed MUC5AC. Moreover, HBECs transfected with over-expressed PTPRH inhibited the phosphorylation of EGFR, ERK1/2 and AKT, while induced against PTPRH in HBECs dephosphorylated of EGFR, ERK1/2 and AKT. CONCLUSION: PTPRH reduces MUC5AC secretion to alleviate airway obstruction in asthma via potential phosphorylating of EGFR/ERK1/2/AKT signaling pathway, which may provide possible therapeutic implications for asthma.

Evaluation of the Characteristics of Asthma in Severe and Extremely Severe COPD.

Background: Biotherapy for asthma may be useful in patients suffering from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) with asthma characteristics. Therefore, the evaluation and close monitoring of asthma characteristics in severe and extremely severe COPD can guide treatment decisions to improve prognosis. Methods: Stable patients suffering from COPD and having a forced expiratory volume in 1 s (FEV1%) of ≤50% (GOLD 3-4) in the First Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-Sen University from December 2014 to June 2018 were retrospectively enrolled in this study and evaluated in terms of their asthma characteristics (blood eosinophil counts, fractional exhaled NO [FeNO] values, and reversibility). Results: A total of 178 patients with an average age of 65.62±9.28 years were enrolled in this study. A total of 85 patients had an improvement of ≥12% in FEV1%, and 61 of these patients had an absolute increase of >200 mL. Of 122 patients, 68 had blood eosinophil counts of ≥150 cells/µl, whereas 27 showed blood eosinophil counts ≥300 cells/µl. The blood eosinophil of ≥2% was found in 66/122 (54.10%) patients, whereas ≥3% was found in 51/122 (41.80%) patients. A total of 46 of 58 patients had an increased serum IgE level of ≥30 IU/mL, and 32 patients had an IgE of ≥100 IU/mL. The FeNO value of ≥25 ACO (ppb) was found in 51/155 (32.90%) patients. Furthermore, 43 patients had asthma-COPD overlap (ACO), and the FeNO values in the ACO group was 26.13±14.91 ppb, which was significantly higher than that in the COPD alone group (20.99±9.16 ppb; P=0.016). A total of 12 patients with ACO had a negative response after bronchodilation. In the COPD alone group, 34 patients had an absolute increase of >200 mL, whereas 55 of the 95 patients had blood eosinophil counts of ≥150 cells/µl. The blood eosinophilia of ≥2% was found in 54/95 (56.84%) patients. A total of 36 of 45 patients had an increased serum IgE level of ≥30 IU/mL. The FeNO value of 34/123 (27.64%) patients was ≥25 ppb. Conclusion: The characteristics of asthma are common findings in patients with severe and extremely severe COPD. Biomarkers should be actively used to evaluate the characteristics of asthma in these patients. If the characteristics of asthma exist, then anti-IgE or anti-IL-5 therapy should be considered to reduce exacerbation.

Efficacy of chitosan and sodium alginate scaffolds for repair of spinal cord injury in rats.

Spinal cord injury results in the loss of motor and sensory pathways and spontaneous regeneration of adult mammalian spinal cord neurons is limited. Chitosan and sodium alginate have good biocompatibility, biodegradability, and are suitable to assist the recovery of damaged tissues, such as skin, bone and nerve. Chitosan scaffolds, sodium alginate scaffolds and chitosan-sodium alginate scaffolds were separately transplanted into rats with spinal cord hemisection. Basso-Beattie-Bresnahan locomotor rating scale scores and electrophysiological results showed that chitosan scaffolds promoted recovery of locomotor capacity and nerve transduction of the experimental rats. Sixty days after surgery, chitosan scaffolds retained the original shape of the spinal cord. Compared with sodium alginate scaffolds- and chitosan-sodium alginate scaffolds-transplanted rats, more neurofilament-H-immunoreactive cells (regenerating nerve fibers) and less glial fibrillary acidic protein-immunoreactive cells (astrocytic scar tissue) were observed at the injury site of experimental rats in chitosan scaffold-transplanted rats. Due to the fast degradation rate of sodium alginate, sodium alginate scaffolds and composite material scaffolds did not have a supporting and bridging effect on the damaged tissue. Above all, compared with sodium alginate and composite material scaffolds, chitosan had better biocompatibility, could promote the regeneration of nerve fibers and prevent the formation of scar tissue, and as such, is more suitable to help the repair of spinal cord injury.

Importance of fractional exhaled nitric oxide in diagnosis of bronchiectasis accompanied with bronchial asthma.

BACKGROUND: Fractional exhaled nitric oxide (FeNO) measurement is a simple, rapid, highly reproducible, and noninvasive method of airway inflammation assessment. Therefore, FeNO is extensively used for the diagnosis and management of asthma. The feasibility of using FeNO as an alternative to conventional pulmonary function test to differentiate patients with bronchiectasis (BE) and bronchial asthma from those with BE only remains unclear. METHODS: From February 2013 to February 2015, 99 patients diagnosed with BE through high-resolution computed tomography (HRCT) were subjected to FeNO measurement, bronchial challenge test (BCT), or bronchodilator test. Bronchial hyperreactivity and/or reversible airway obstruction was used to define asthma. The receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves were obtained to elucidate the clinical functions of FeNO in the diagnosis of asthmatic patients with BE, and the optimal operating point was also determined. RESULTS: Of 99 patients with BE, 20 patients presented asthma, and 12 of these patients received regular treatment, which were given with budesonide (200 µg, bid) for 12 weeks to evaluate changes in the concentration and assess the role of FeNO in the treatment. The area under the ROC curve was estimated as 0.832 for FeNO. Results also revealed a cut off value of >22.5 part per billion (ppb) FeNO for differentiating asthmatic from non-asthmatic (sensitivity, 90.0%; specificity, 62.5%) patients with BE. FeNO and forced expiratory volume for 1 second significantly improved after the treatment. CONCLUSIONS: Clinical FeNO measurement is a simple, noninvasive, and rapid method used to differentiate asthmatic from nonasthmatic patients with BE. This technique exhibits potential for asthma management.

Importance of fractional exhaled nitric oxide in the differentiation of asthma-COPD overlap syndrome, asthma, and COPD.

BACKGROUND: Fractional exhaled nitric oxide (FeNO) is an easy, sensitive, reproducible, and noninvasive marker of eosinophilic airway inflammation. Accordingly, FeNO is extensively used to diagnose and manage asthma. Patients with COPD who share some of the features of asthma have a condition called asthma-COPD overlap syndrome (ACOS). The feasibility of using FeNO to differentiate ACOS patients from asthma and COPD patients remains unclear. METHODS: From February 2013 to May 2016, patients suspected with asthma and COPD through physician's opinion were subjected to FeNO measurement, pulmonary function test (PFT), and bronchial hyperresponsiveness or bronchodilator test. Patients were divided into asthma alone group, COPD alone group, and ACOS group according to a clinical history, PFT values, and bronchial hyperresponsiveness or bronchodilator test. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves were obtained to elucidate the clinical functions of FeNO in diagnosing ACOS. The optimal operating point was also determined. RESULTS: A total of 689 patients were enrolled in this study: 500 had asthma, 132 had COPD, and 57 had ACOS. The FeNO value in patients with ACOS was 27 (21.5) parts per billion (ppb; median [interquartile range]), which was significantly higher than that in the COPD group (18 [11] ppb). The area under the ROC curve was estimated to be 0.783 for FeNO. Results also revealed an optimal cutoff value of >22.5 ppb FeNO for differentiating ACOS from COPD patients (sensitivity 70%, specificity 75%). CONCLUSION: FeNO measurement is an easy, noninvasive, and sensitive method for differentiating ACOS from COPD. This technique is a new perspective for the management of COPD patients.