Observational Study of Methotrexate in the Treatment of Bronchiolitis Obliterans Syndrome.

BACKGROUND: Methotrexate (MTX) is potential change in immunosuppression after lung transplantation that may help to slow down the decline in lung function in bronchiolitis obliterans syndrome (BOS). METHODS: We sought to analyze the safety and efficacy of MTX in patients with BOS, by retrospective case review. RESULTS: Thirty lung allograft patients were treated with MTX for BOS after one bilateral lower lobe, nine single, 16 bilateral, and four heart-lung transplants. Twenty-one patients had MTX treatment for a minimum of 6 months, and their serial lung function was analyzed for efficacy. In these patients, there was a significant overall increase in mean forced expiratory volume in 1 second (FEV1) of 149 mL (P < .02) at 3 months, with an increase observed in 14 of 21 patients. At 6 months, there was a mean increase in FEV1 of 117 mL (P < .05). At 12 months, there was a mean non-significant increase of FEV1 of 60 mL (P = .19) observed in 18 patients who had MTX for this time period. The rate of decline in FEV1 before MTX was 118.5 mL/month and at 3 months after MTX increased to 49.5 mL/months (P < .0005) in the FEV1. Nine patients had been treated with MTX for less than 6 months; two died within 6 months of starting MTX, five tolerated the drug poorly with nausea and tiredness, and one developed leucopenia. One patient requested discontinuation of the medication after failing to halt the rapid progressive decline in lung function after 1 month. CONCLUSIONS: Methotrexate therapy provides a potential therapeutic strategy in managing the progressive decline in lung function observed in BOS. This is hampered by the observation of poor tolerability and side effects.

Pseudomonas aeruginosa Induced Airway Epithelial Injury Drives Fibroblast Activation: A Mechanism in Chronic Lung Allograft Dysfunction.

Bacterial infections after lung transplantation cause airway epithelial injury and are associated with an increased risk of developing bronchiolitis obliterans syndrome. The damaged epithelium is a source of alarmins that activate the innate immune system, yet their ability to activate fibroblasts in the development of bronchiolitis obliterans syndrome has not been evaluated. Two epithelial alarmins were measured longitudinally in bronchoalveolar lavages from lung transplant recipients who developed bronchiolitis obliterans syndrome and were compared to stable controls. In addition, conditioned media from human airway epithelial cells infected with Pseudomonas aeruginosa was applied to lung fibroblasts and inflammatory responses were determined. Interleukin-1 alpha (IL-1α) was increased in bronchoalveolar lavage of lung transplant recipients growing P. aeruginosa (11.5 [5.4-21.8] vs. 2.8 [0.9-9.4] pg/mL, p < 0.01) and was significantly elevated within 3 months of developing bronchiolitis obliterans syndrome (8.3 [1.4-25.1] vs. 3.6 [0.6-17.1] pg/mL, p < 0.01), whereas high mobility group protein B1 remained unchanged. IL-1α positively correlated with elevated bronchoalveolar lavage IL-8 levels (r(2)  = 0.6095, p < 0.0001) and neutrophil percentage (r(2)  = 0.25, p = 0.01). Conditioned media from P. aeruginosa infected epithelial cells induced a potent pro-inflammatory phenotype in fibroblasts via an IL-1α/IL-1R-dependent signaling pathway. In conclusion, we propose that IL-1α may be a novel therapeutic target to limit Pseudomonas associated allograft injury after lung transplantation.

An international ISHLT/ATS/ERS clinical practice guideline: diagnosis and management of bronchiolitis obliterans syndrome

Bronchiolitis obliterans syndrome (BOS) is a major complication of lung transplantation that is associated with poor survival. The International Society for Heart and Lung Transplantation, American Thoracic Society, and European Respiratory Society convened a committee of international experts to describe and/or provide recommendations for 1) the definition of BOS, 2) the risk factors for developing BOS, 3) the diagnosis of BOS, and 4) the management and prevention of BOS. A pragmatic evidence synthesis was performed to identify all unique citations related to BOS published from 1980 through to March, 2013. The expert committee discussed the available research evidence upon which the updated definition of BOS, identified risk factors and recommendations are based. The committee followed the GRADE (Grading of Recommendation, Assessment, Development and Evaluation) approach to develop specific clinical recommendations. The term BOS should be used to describe a delayed allograft dysfunction with persistent decline in forced expiratory volume in 1 s that is not caused by other known and potentially reversible causes of post-transplant loss of lung function. The committee formulated specific recommendations about the use of systemic corticosteroids, cyclosporine, tacrolimus, azithromycin and about re-transplantation in patients with suspected and confirmed BOS. The diagnosis of BOS requires the careful exclusion of other post-transplant complications that can cause delayed lung allograft dysfunction, and several risk factors have been identified that have a significant association with the onset of BOS. Currently available therapies have not been proven to result in significant benefit in the prevention or treatment of BOS. Adequately designed and executed randomised controlled trials that properly measure and report all patient-important outcomes are needed to identify optimal therapies for established BOS and effective strategies for its prevention.(AU)

Lack of association between KIR and HLA-C type and susceptibility to idiopathic bronchiectasis.

INTRODUCTION: Idiopathic bronchiectasis is a poorly defined disease characterised by persistent inflammation, infection and progressive lung damage. Natural killer (NK) cells provide a major defense against infection, through the interaction of their surface receptors, including the activating and inhibitory killer immunoglobulin-like receptors (KIR), and human leukocyte antigens (HLA) class I molecules. Homozygosity for HLA-C has been shown in a single study to confer increased genetic susceptibility to idiopathic bronchiectasis. We aimed to assess whether the KIR and HLA repertoire, alone or in combination, may influence the risk of developing idiopathic bronchiectasis, in an independent replication study. METHODS: In this prospective, observational, case-control association study, 79 idiopathic bronchiectasis patients diagnosed following extensive aetiological investigation were compared with 98 anonymous, healthy, age, sex and ethnically-matched controls attending blood donor sessions in the same geographical location. DNA extraction was performed according to standardised techniques. Determination of presence or absence of KIR genes was performed by a sequence specific oligonucleotide probe method. Allele frequencies for the proposed KIR, HLA-B and HLA-C risk alleles both individually and in combinations were compared. RESULTS: We found no significant differences in allele frequency between the idiopathic bronchiectasis and control samples, whether considering HLA-C group homozygosity alone or in combination with the KIR type. DISCUSSION: Our results do not show an association between HLA-C and KIR and therefore do not confirm previous positive findings. This may be explained by the lower frequency of HLA-C1 group homozygosity in the control population of the previous study (27.2%), compared to 42.3% in our study, which is consistent with the genetic profiling of control groups across the UK. The previous positive association study may therefore have been driven by an anomalous control group. Further larger prospective multicentre replication studies are needed to determine if an association exists.

IL-1α released from damaged epithelial cells is sufficient and essential to trigger inflammatory responses in human lung fibroblasts.

Activation of the innate immune system plays a key role in exacerbations of chronic lung disease, yet the potential role of lung fibroblasts in innate immunity and the identity of epithelial danger signals (alarmins) that may contribute to this process are unclear. The objective of the study was to identify lung epithelial-derived alarmins released during endoplasmic reticulum stress (ER stress) and oxidative stress and evaluate their potential to induce innate immune responses in lung fibroblasts. We found that treatment of primary human lung fibroblasts (PHLFs) with conditioned media from damaged lung epithelial cells significantly upregulated interleukin IL-6, IL-8, monocyte chemotactic protein-1, and granulocyte macrophage colony-stimulating factor expression (P<0.05). This effect was reduced with anti-IL-1α or IL-1Ra but not anti-IL-1ß antibody. Costimulation with a Toll-like receptor 3 ligand, polyinosinic-polycytidylic acid (poly I:C), significantly accentuated the IL-1α-induced inflammatory phenotype in PHLFs, and this effect was blocked with inhibitor of nuclear factor kappa-B kinase subunit beta and TGFß-activated kinase-1 inhibitors. Finally, Il1r1-/- and Il1a-/- mice exhibit reduced bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) neutrophilia and collagen deposition in response to bleomycin treatment. We conclude that IL-1α plays a pivotal role in triggering proinflammatory responses in fibroblasts and this process is accentuated in the presence of double-stranded RNA. This mechanism may be important in the repeated cycles of injury and exacerbation in chronic lung disease.

Phenotyping adults with non-cystic fibrosis bronchiectasis: a prospective observational cohort study.

BACKGROUND: Bronchiectasis is the outcome of a number of different airway insults. Very few studies have characterised the aetiology and utility of a dedicated screening proforma in adult patients attending a general bronchiectasis clinic. METHODS: A prospective observational study of 189 bronchiectasis patients attending two centres in the North East of England over a two-year period was performed. RESULTS: The aetiology of bronchiectasis was identified in 107/189(57%) patients. Idiopathic bronchiectasis (IB) represented the largest subgroup (43%). Post-infection bronchiectasis (PIB) constituted the largest proportion (24%) of known causes. Mean age (SD) at diagnosis was 54(20) years with a mean age at symptom onset of 37(24) years, accounting for a diagnostic delay of 17 years. Age of symptom onset was significantly younger in patients with PIB compared to IB (p < 0.0001) and in Pseudomonas sputum positive patients (p = 0.007). Screening for APBA and total immunoglobulin deficiency identified 9 (5%) patients who then had tailored treatment. Routine screening for other aetiologies was deemed unnecessary. CONCLUSION: IB and PIB accounted for two thirds of cases of bronchiectasis in a general population. We recommend routine screening for ABPA and total immunoglobulin deficiency but not for other rarer aetiologies.

TNFα from classically activated macrophages accentuates epithelial to mesenchymal transition in obliterative bronchiolitis.

Bronchiolitis obliterans syndrome is characterized by fibrotic obliteration of small airways which severely impairs graft function and survival after lung transplantation. Bronchial epithelial cells from the transplanted lung can undergo epithelial to mesenchymal transition and this can be accentuated by activated macrophages. Macrophages demonstrate significant plasticity and change phenotype in response to their microenvironment. In this study we aimed to identify secretory products from macrophages that might be therapeutic targets for limiting the inflammatory accentuation of epithelial to mesenchymal transition in bronchiolitis obliterans syndrome. TNFα, IL-1ß and IL-8 are elevated in bronchoalveolar lavage from lung transplant patients prior to diagnosis of bronchiolitis obliterans syndrome. Classically activated macrophages secrete more TNFα and IL-1ß than alternatively activated macrophages and dramatically accentuate TGF-ß1-driven epithelial to mesenchymal transition in bronchial epithelial cells isolated from lung transplant patients. Blocking TNFα, but not IL-1ß, inhibits the accentuation of epithelial to mesenchymal transition. In a pilot unblinded therapeutic intervention in five patients with progressive bronchiolitis obliterans syndrome, anti-TNFα treatment improved forced expiratory volume in 1 second and 6-min walk distances in four patients. Our data identify TNFα as a potential new therapeutic target in bronchiolitis obliterans syndrome deserving of a randomized placebo controlled clinical trial.

Should we be giving high concentration oxygen to all patients treated in an ambulance?

Oxygen is one of the most widely used drugs. It is important to recognise that oxygen administration carries risks as well as benefits. While adequate oxygen saturation of arterial blood is an important factor in tissue oxygen delivery, oxygen administration to patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease can lead to decompensated type II respiratory failure. In this debate, Dr Lavery makes the case that high concentration oxygen should be given to all patients treated in an ambulance, while Professor Corris argues against this position.

Anti-reflux surgery in lung transplant recipients: outcomes and effects on quality of life.

Fundoplication may improve survival after lung transplantation. Little is known about the effects of fundoplication on quality of life in these patients. The aim of this study was to assess the safety of fundoplication in lung transplant recipients and its effects on quality of life. Between June 1, 2008 and December 31, 2010, a prospective study of lung transplant recipients undergoing fundoplication was undertaken. Quality of life was assessed before and after surgery. Body mass index (BMI) and pulmonary function were followed up. 16 patients, mean ± sd age 38 ± 11.9 yrs, underwent laparoscopic Nissen fundoplication. There was no peri-operative mortality or major complications. Mean ± SD hospital stay was 2.6 ± 0.9 days. 15 out of 16 patients were satisfied with the results of surgery post fundoplication. There was a significant improvement in reflux symptom index and DeMeester questionnaires and gastrointestinal quality of life index scores at 6 months. Mean BMI decreased significantly after fundoplication (p = 0.01). Patients operated on for deteriorating lung function had a statistically significant decrease in the rate of lung function decline after fundoplication (p = 0.008). Laparoscopic fundoplication is safe in selected lung transplant recipients. Patient benefit is suggested by improved symptoms and satisfaction. This procedure is acceptable, improves quality of life and may reduce deterioration of lung function.

Volatile biomarkers of Pseudomonas aeruginosa in cystic fibrosis and noncystic fibrosis bronchiectasis.

AIMS: The purpose of this study was to determine whether volatile organic compounds specific to Pseudomonas aeruginosa could be detected in clinical sputum specimens. METHODS AND RESULTS: Patients were recruited from specialist bronchiectasis and cystic fibrosis clinics. The gold standard for diagnosing Ps. aeruginosa infection was a positive sputum culture. About 72 sputum headspace samples taken from patients at risk of or known to have prior Ps. aeruginosa infection were analysed by solid phase micro-extraction mass spectrometry. 2-nonanone was a marker in Ps. aeruginosa in sputum headspace gas with sensitivity of 72% and specificity of 88%. A combination of volatile compounds, a sputum library of 17 compounds with 2-nonanone, increased sensitivity in the detection of Ps. aeruginosa to 91% with specificity of 88%. CONCLUSIONS: In contrast to the 48-hour turnaround for classical microbiological culture, these results were available within 1-2 h. These data demonstrate the potential for rapid and accurate diagnosis of Ps. aeruginosa infection from sputum samples. SIGNIFICANCE AND IMPACT OF THE STUDY: 2-Nonanone is a compound requiring further study in the exhaled breath as it may improve diagnostic of Ps. aeruginosa infection when combined with other reported volatile markers.

Raised interleukin-17 is immunolocalised to neutrophils in cystic fibrosis lung disease.

Interleukin (IL)-17 is pivotal in orchestrating the activity of neutrophils. Neutrophilic inflammation is the dominant pathology in cystic fibrosis (CF) lung disease. We investigated IL-17 protein expression in the lower airway in CF, its cellular immunolocalisation and the effects of IL-17 on CF primary bronchial epithelial cells. Immunohistochemistry was performed on explanted CF lungs and compared with the non-suppurative condition pulmonary hypertension (PH). Airway lavages and epithelial cultures were generated from explanted CF lungs. Immunoreactivity for IL-17 was significantly increased in the lower airway epithelium in CF (median 14.1%) compared with PH (2.95%, p=0.0001). The number of cells staining positive for IL-17 in the lower airway mucosa was also increased (64 cells·mm(-1) compared with 9 cells·mm(-1) basement membrane, p=0.0005) and included both neutrophils in addition to mononuclear cells. IL-17 was detectable in airway lavages from explanted CF lungs. Treatment of epithelial cultures with IL-17 increased production of IL-8, IL-6 and granulocyte macrophage colony-stimulating factor. In conclusion, immunoreactive IL-17 is raised in the lower airway of people with CF and localises to both neutrophils and mononuclear cells. IL-17 increases production of pro-neutrophilic mediators by CF epithelial cells, suggesting potential for a positive feedback element in airway inflammation.

Pseudomonas aeruginosa accentuates epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition in the airway.

Epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT) has been implicated in the dysregulated epithelial wound repair that contributes to obliterative bronchiolitis (OB) after lung transplantation. Acquisition of Pseudomonas aeruginosa in the transplanted airway has been shown to be a risk factor for the development of OB. We investigated the potential of P. aeruginosa to drive EMT in primary bronchial epithelial cells (PBECs) isolated from lung transplant recipients. Changes in the expression of epithelial and mesenchymal markers was assessed in cells challenged with clinical isolates of P. aeruginosa or co-cultured with P. aeruginosa-activated monocytic cells (THP-1) in the presence or absence of transforming growth factor (TGF)-ß1. P. aeruginosa did not drive or accentuate TGF-ß1-driven EMT directly. Co-culturing P. aeruginosa-activated THP-1 cells with PBECs did not drive EMT. However, co-culturing P. aeruginosa-activated THP-1 cells with PBECs significantly accentuated TGF-ß1-driven EMT. P. aeruginosa, via the activation of monocytic cells, can accentuate TGF-ß1-driven EMT. These in vitro observations may help explain the in vivo clinical observation of a link between acquisition of P. aeruginosa and an increased risk of developing OB.

Inflammation and epithelial to mesenchymal transition in lung transplant recipients: role in dysregulated epithelial wound repair.

Epithelial to mesenchymal transition (EMT) has been implicated in the pathogenesis of obliterative bronchiolitis (OB) after lung transplant. Although TNF-alpha accentuates TGF-beta1 driven EMT in primary human bronchial epithelial cells (PBECs), we hypothesized that other acute pro-inflammatory cytokines elevated in the airways of patients with OB may also accentuate EMT and contribute to dysregulated epithelial wound repair. PBECs from lung transplant recipients were stimulated with TGF-beta1+/-IL-1beta, IL-8, TNF-alpha or activated macrophages in co-culture and EMT assessed. The quality and rate of wound closure in a standardized model of lung epithelial injury was assessed in response to above stimuli. Co-treatment with TGF-beta1+TNF-alpha or IL-1beta significantly accentuates phenotypic and some functional features of EMT compared to TGF-beta1 alone. Co-treatment with TGF-beta1+TNF-alpha or IL-1beta accelerates epithelial wound closure however the quality of repair is highly dysregulated. Co-treatment with TGF-beta1+IL-8 has no significant effect on EMT or the speed or quality of wound healing. Activated macrophages dramatically accentuate TGF-beta1-driven EMT and cause dysregulated wound repair. Crosstalk between macrophage-derived acute inflammation in the airway and elevated TGF-beta1 may favor dysregulated airway epithelial repair and fibrosis in the lung allograft via EMT.

Targeting allograft injury and inflammation in the management of post-lung transplant bronchiolitis obliterans syndrome.

Chronic allograft dysfunction, manifesting as bronchiolitis obliterans syndrome (BOS), is the major cause of morbidity and mortality in human lung transplant recipients. While alloimmunity has a definite role, there is increasing interest in overall allograft injury and subsequent inflammation and remodeling. This review deals with nonalloimmune factors that may potentiate alloimmune injury. We discuss infection and reflux/aspiration as examples of allograft injury, which may lead to chronic loss of graft function and BOS. Surgical and nonsurgical treatments aimed at preventing these insults and improving survival are considered. The need for further evidence, including randomized-controlled trials, to evaluate the role of medical and surgical therapies is emphasized by the current literature.

Epithelial to mesenchymal transition (EMT) and airway remodelling after human lung transplantation.

BACKGROUND: Aberrant epithelial repair is a key event in the airway remodelling which characterises obliterative bronchiolitis (OB) in the transplanted lung. The potential for airway epithelium from lung transplant recipients to undergo epithelial to mesenchymal cell transition (EMT) was assessed in culture and in vivo in lung allograft tissue. METHODS: Change in epithelial and mesenchymal marker expression was assessed after stimulation with transforming growth factor beta(1) (TGF-beta(1)) alone or in combination with tumour necrosis factor alpha (TNFalpha) and compared with untreated controls. The ability of cells to deposit extracellular matrix, secrete matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) and invade collagen was investigated. Immunolocalisation of epithelial and mesenchymal markers was compared in airway tissue from stable recipients and those with OB. RESULTS: Untreated cells maintained epithelial morphology and phenotype. TGF-beta(1) reduced expression of epithelial markers, increased expression of vimentin and fibronectin, promoted collagen I and fibronectin deposition and increased MMP-9 production. Co-treatment with TNFalpha dramatically accentuated phenotypic and some functional features of EMT. Airway epithelial biopsies from recipients with OB demonstrated significantly increased staining for mesenchymal markers and significantly reduced E-cadherin staining compared with stable recipients. CONCLUSIONS: These observations demonstrate the ability of human airway epithelium to undergo EMT and suggest this phenomenon may be a potential link between inflammatory injury and TGF-beta(1)-driven airway remodelling in the development of OB.

Bronchial epithelial cells cultured from clinically stable lung allograft patients promote the development of macrophages from monocytes rather than dendritic cells.

BACKGROUND: It is understood that chronic allograft failure occurs as a result of alloimmune and non-alloimmune injury. Dendritic cells (DC) are thought to be crucial in regulating (allo)immune airway damage and interactions with epithelial cells are likely. Studies in human lung transplantation are limited, however, and the available literature on DC is inconsistent. This study focused on the ex vivo influence of primary bronchial epithelial cells derived from lung allografts on DC differentiation. METHODS: Epithelial cell conditioned media (ECCM) were added to monocytes differentiating into DC under the influence of interleukin-4 and granulocyte macrophage-colony stimulating factor. The resultant cells were compared with DC cultured without ECCM and with monocyte-derived macrophages. Expression of typical DC (eg, CD1a) and macrophage (eg, CD14) markers was assessed by flow cytometry. Phenotypical assessments were complemented by functional studies of mannose receptor-mediated phagocytosis (FITC-dextran uptake) and antigen-presenting capability (mixed lymphocyte reactions). RESULTS: Cells exposed to ECCM expressed significantly lower levels of CD1a than unexposed DC. CD14 expression and phagocytic function were increased. ECCM cultured cells also expressed lower levels of T cell co-stimulatory molecules, secreted an anti-inflammatory cytokine profile and had significantly reduced antigen-presenting capability. CONCLUSION: Using phenotypic and functional approaches, this study has shown that ECCM from lung allografts drives the production of macrophage-like cells from monocytes rather than DC. The data suggest that epithelial cells may restrain airway DC and potential alloimmunity. It is unclear whether the observed effect is specifically seen in lung transplant recipients or is a general property of bronchial epithelial cells. This may reflect a homeostatic inter-relationship between airway epithelial and DC populations relevant both to lung allografts and the lung more generally.