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Respir Investig 2022 May 17. Epub 2022 May 17.

Nagasaki University School of Medicine Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, Department of Respiratory Medicine, 1-7-1, Sakamoto, Nagasaki, 852-8501, Japan.

Am J Respir Crit Care Med 2022 May 18. Epub 2022 May 18.

University Medical Center Groningen, Pulmonary diseases, Groningen, Netherlands.

Rationale: Pulmonary hyperinflation in patients with Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) has been related to smaller cardiac chamber sizes and impaired cardiac function. Nowadays, bronchoscopic lung volume reduction (BLVR) with endobronchial valves is a treatment option to reduce pulmonary hyperinflation in patients with severe emphysema.

Objectives: We hypothesized that reduction of hyperinflation would improve cardiac preload in this patient group. Read More

Mol Med Rep 2022 Jul 18;26(1). Epub 2022 May 18.

Department of General Practice, Hainan General Hospital, Hainan Affiliated Hospital of Hainan Medical University, Haikou, Hainan 570311, P.R. China.

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is characterized by irreversible and progressive airflow limitation and encompasses a spectrum of diseases, including chronic obstructive bronchitis and emphysema. Pyroptosis is a unique form of inflammatory cell death mediated by the activation of caspase‑1 and inflammasomes. The long non‑coding RNA (lncRNA) growth arrest‑specific 5 (GAS5) is a well‑documented tumor suppressor, which is associated with cell proliferation and death in various diseases. Read More

Radiology 2022 May 17:213054. Epub 2022 May 17.

From the Departments of Radiology (A.S.O., D.A.L., S.M.H.) and Biostatistics (D.B.) and Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, Department of Medicine (J.D.C.), National Jewish Health, 1400 Jackson St, Denver, CO 80206; and Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, Mass (S.Y.A.).

Background Visual assessment remains the standard for evaluating emphysema at CT; however, it is time consuming, is subjective, requires training, and is affected by variability that may limit sensitivity to longitudinal change. Purpose To evaluate the clinical and imaging significance of increasing emphysema severity as graded by a deep learning algorithm on sequential CT scans in cigarette smokers. Materials and Methods A secondary analysis of the prospective Genetic Epidemiology of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPDGene) study participants was performed and included baseline and 5-year follow-up CT scans from 2007 to 2017. Read More

Intern Emerg Med 2022 May 17. Epub 2022 May 17.

Section of Respiratory Diseases, Department of Medicine and Surgery, SMECHIMAI, University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, AOU di Modena Policlinico, Largo del Pozzo 71, 41124, Modena, Italy.

J Am Anim Hosp Assoc 2022 May;58(3):141-145

From the Department of Veterinary Medical Sciences, University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy.

A 2 mo old domestic shorthair kitten was presented for acute respiratory distress and severe ambulatory difficulties. Thoracic radiography revealed hyperinflation of the left cranial lung lobe and a mass with soft-tissue/gas opacity in the caudal mediastinum, leading to the suspicion of congenital lung lobe emphysema and hiatal hernia. Decreased bone radiopacity and suspected pathological fractures were also present. Read More

Semin Respir Crit Care Med 2022 May 13. Epub 2022 May 13.

Department of Pulmonary Diseases, University of Groningen, University Medical Center Groningen, Groningen, the Netherlands.

In carefully selected patients with severe chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, characterized by emphysema and hyperinflation, lung volume reduction is an option to reduce lung hyperinflation, improve lung function, quality of life, and exercise capacity. Currently, there are several bronchoscopic and surgical treatment options to achieve lung volume reduction. It is important to carefully phenotype these patients, to select the optimal treatment option, with consideration of possible adverse events or contraindications, and it is highly recommended to discuss these treatment strategies in a multidisciplinary team. Read More

Chronic Obstr Pulm Dis 2022 May 11. Epub 2022 May 11.

Division of Pulmonary, Allergy and Critical Care Medicine, Department of Medicine, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States.

Introduction: Factors beyond cigarette smoke likely contribute to chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) pathogenesis. Prior studies demonstrate fungal colonization of the respiratory tract and increased epithelial barrier permeability in COPD. We sought to determine whether 1,3-beta-d-glucan (BDG), a polysaccharide component of the fungal cell wall, is detectable in the plasma of individuals with COPD and associates with clinical outcomes and matrix degradation proteins. Read More

Am J Respir Crit Care Med 2022 May 12. Epub 2022 May 12.

University of California Los Angeles David Geffen School of Medicine, 12222, Division of Pulmonary & Critical Care Medicine, Department of Medicine, Los Angeles, California, United States.

Rationale: Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is defined by fixed spirometric ratio FEV1/FVC < 0.70 following inhaled bronchodilators. However, the implications of variable obstruction (VO), in which the pre-bronchodilator FEV1/FVC ratio is <0. Read More

BMJ Open Respir Res 2022 May;9(1)

Pulmonary Research Unit Region Zealand (PLUZ), Department of Respiratory Medicine, Zealand Univsersity Hospital Naestved and Roskilde, Naestved, Denmark.

Background: Singing for Lung Health (SLH) was non-inferior to physical exercise training in improving 6-minute walking test distance (6MWD) and quality of life (St. George's Respiratory Questionnaire (SGRQ)) within a 10-week pulmonary rehabilitation (PR) programme for COPD in our recent randomised controlled trial (RCT) (NCT03280355). Previous studies suggest that singing improves lung function, respiratory control and dyspnoea, however this has not yet been convincingly confirmed. Read More

Lancet Microbe 2021 Jul 23;2(7):e300-e310. Epub 2021 Apr 23.

Department of Respiratory Sciences, Institute for Lung Health, University of Leicester, and Leicester NIHR Biomedical Research Centre, Leicester, UK. Electronic address:

Background: Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is associated with airway inflammation and bacterial dysbiosis. The relationship between the airway microbiome and bronchial gene expression in COPD is poorly understood. We aimed to identify differences in the airway microbiome from bronchial brushings in patients with COPD and healthy individuals and to investigate whether any distinguishing bacteria are related to bronchial gene expression. Read More

Ann Am Thorac Soc 2022 May 10. Epub 2022 May 10.

VA Boston Healthcare System, 548301, Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine Section, Boston, Massachusetts, United States.

Rationale: Differences in body composition may contribute to variability in exercise capacity (EC) and physical activity (PA) in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Most studies have employed bioimpedance-based surrogates of muscle (lean) mass; relatively few studies have included consideration of fat mass and limited studies have been performed using dual X-ray absorptiometry (DXA)-assessed body composition.

Objective: To determine whether DXA-assessed muscle (lean) and fat mass exhibit differential correlations with EC and PA in COPD Methods: US Veterans with COPD (defined as FEV1/FVC<0. Read More

Eur J Radiol 2022 May 5;152:110338. Epub 2022 May 5.

Department of Radiology, Amiens University Hospital, 1 Rond-Point du Professeur Christian Cabrol, F-80054 Amiens Cedex 01, France. Electronic address:

Purpose: Quantitative analysis of emphysema volume is affected by the radiation dose and the CT reconstruction technique. We aim to evaluate the influence of a commercially available deep learning image reconstruction algorithm (DLIR) on the quantification of pulmonary emphysema in low-dose chest CT.

Methods: We performed a retrospective study of low dose chest CT scans in 54 patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Read More

Toxicol Ind Health 2022 May 7:7482337221095638. Epub 2022 May 7.

Department of Chest Surgery, Cerrahpasa Faculty of Medicine, 532719Istanbul University-Cerrahpasa, Istanbul, Turkey.

Air pollution, especially at chronic exposure to high concentrations, is a respiratory risk factor for the development of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). E-cadherin, a cell-cell adhesion protein, is involved in the integrity of the alveolar epithelium. Causes of E-cadherin decreases in emphysematous areas with pulmonary cell damage related to COPD are not well understood. Read More

Respirology 2022 Jun 5;27(6):399-410. Epub 2022 May 5.

Section of Occupational Medicine, Respiratory Diseases and Toxicology, University of Perugia, Perugia, Italy.

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is caused by exposure to noxious particles and gases. Smoking is the main risk factor, but other factors are also associated with COPD. Occupational exposure to vapours, gases, dusts and fumes contributes to the development and progression of COPD, accounting for a population attributable fraction of 14%. Read More

J Pharmacol Sci 2022 Jun 23;149(2):37-45. Epub 2022 Mar 23.

Department of Molecular Medicine, Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Science, Kumamoto University, 5-1 Oe-honmachi, Chuo-ku, Kumamoto, 862-0973, Japan. Electronic address:

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is one of the leading causes of death in the world, and has no radical treatment. Inhibition of amiloride-sensitive epithelial sodium ion channel (ENaC) has now been considered as a potential therapeutic target against COPD. One possible modulator of ENaC is AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK), a key molecule that controls a wide variety of cellular signals; however, little is known about whether metformin, a clinically available AMPK activator, has a protective role against ENaC-associated chronic pulmonary phenotypes, such as emphysema and pulmonary dysfunction. Read More

Biotechnol Bioeng 2022 May 4. Epub 2022 May 4.

Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Université de Montréal, Qc, Canada, H3C 3J7.

Alpha-1-antitrypsin (A1AT) is a serine protease inhibitor which blocks the activity of serum proteases including neutrophil elastase to protect the lungs. Its deficiency is known to increase the risk of pulmonary emphysema as well as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Currently, the only treatment for patients with A1AT deficiency is weekly injection of plasma-purified A1AT. Read More

Pulmonology 2022 Apr 29. Epub 2022 Apr 29.

The COPD Laboratory of Clinical Research Base, Chinese Medicine Hospital of Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, China; The Clinical Research Base Laboratory, Chinese Medicine Hospital of Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, China. Electronic address:

Background: Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a chronic bronchitis (or) emphysema with a high disability and fatality rate. This study aimed to explore the correlation between the six selected single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) and the risk of COPD in the Chinese population.

Methods: The Agena MassARRAY platform was used to select six SNPs from 629 subjects for genotyping. Read More

J Healthc Eng 2022 21;2022:6556208. Epub 2022 Apr 21.

Department of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, Cangzhou Central Hospital, Cangzhou 061001, Hebei, China.

Background: Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is one of the most common chronic respiratory diseases in the world. COPD is a general term for a class of lung diseases, including emphysema, chronic bronchitis, and refractory asthma. It is characterized by irreversible airflow obstruction and chronic tracheal inflammation. Read More

Free Radic Biol Med 2022 Apr 29;186:1-16. Epub 2022 Apr 29.

Department of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, Peking University Third Hospital, Beijing, China. Electronic address:

Background: Redox imbalance is an vital mechanism for COPD. At present, insufficient researches have been conducted on the protective effect of hydrogen sulfide (HS) on PM-induced COPD. However, whether HS exerts the anti-injury role by blocking ferroptosis and restoring redox equilibrium remain to be investigated. Read More

BMC Pulm Med 2022 Apr 29;22(1):172. Epub 2022 Apr 29.

Deparment of Pathology, West Virginia University, Morgantown, WV, USA.

Background: Cigarette smoking is a risk factor for interstitial lung abnormalities (ILAs) and interstitial lung diseases (ILDs). Investigation defining the relationships between ILAs/ILDs and clinical, radiographic, and pathologic findings in smokers have been incomplete. Employing a cohort undergoing surgical resection for lung nodules/masses, we (1) define the prevalence of ILAs/ILDs, (2) delineate their clinical, radiographic and pathologic predictors, and (3) determine their associations with mortality. Read More

J Inflamm Res 2022 20;15:2491-2507. Epub 2022 Apr 20.

Department of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, First Affiliated Hospital of Anhui Medical University, Hefei, 230022, Anhui Province, People's Republic of China.

Purpose: Emphysema is the main cause of the progression of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). This study aimed to identify the key genes involved in COPD-related emphysema.

Patients And Methods: GSE76925 was downloaded from Gene Expression Omnibus database. Read More

BMC Pulm Med 2022 Apr 27;22(1):163. Epub 2022 Apr 27.

Division of Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences, National Jewish Health, Denver, CO, USA.

Background: Exposure to inhalational hazards during post-9/11 deployment to Southwest Asia and Afghanistan puts military personnel at risk for respiratory symptoms and disease. Pulmonary function and qualitative chest high resolution computed tomography (HRCT) are often normal in "deployers" with persistent respiratory symptoms. We explored the utility of quantitative HRCT imaging markers of large and small airways abnormalities, including airway wall thickness, emphysema, and air trapping, in symptomatic deployers with clinically-confirmed lung disease compared to controls. Read More

PLoS One 2022 27;17(4):e0265682. Epub 2022 Apr 27.

Department of Thoracic Medicine, Haukeland University Hospital, Bergen, Norway.

Background: COPD and coronary heart disease (CHD) frequently co-occur, yet which COPD phenotypes are most prone to CHD is poorly understood. The aim of this study was to see whether COPD patients did have a true higher risk for CHD than subjects without COPD, and to examine a range of potential factors associated with CHD in COPD patients and controls.

Methods: 347 COPD patients and 428 non-COPD controls, were invited for coronary computed tomography angiography (CCTA) and pulmonary CT. Read More

Respiration 2022 Apr 25:1-9. Epub 2022 Apr 25.

Istituti Clinici Scientifici Maugeri, Pavia. IRCCS di Bari, Bari, Italy.

In 2020, COPD was the third leading cause of death worldwide. Lung function is central for the diagnosis of this disease, and COPD severity is still partially classified based on airflow obstruction, which can range from "mild" (GOLD 1 group, FEV1 ≥80% predicted) to "very severe" (GOLD 4, FEV1 <30% predicted). However, the term "mild COPD" needs to be carefully analyzed. Read More

Comput Math Methods Med 2022 12;2022:4492574. Epub 2022 Apr 12.

Department of Endocrinology, The First People's Hospital of Jiangxia District, Wuhan City, 430200 Hubei Province, China.

Objective: To analyze the risk factors of pulmonary infection in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) and its implications for clinical intervention.

Methods: One hundred and twenty-five patients with type 2 diabetes treated in our hospital from January 2019 to November 2021 were divided into simple T2DM group ( = 80) and infection group ( = 45) according to whether they were complicated with pulmonary infection or not. Sputum samples of patients with infection were collected and identified by bacterial culture. Read More

Respir Med 2022 Jun 15;197:106852. Epub 2022 Apr 15.

Department of Respiratory Medicine, Copenhagen University Hospital - Herlev and Gentofte, Copenhagen, Denmark; Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark; Department of Public Health, Section of Epidemiology, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark. Electronic address:

Background: Early diagnosis of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) through targeted spirometry may provide better treatment opportunities and in the long run reduce its high burden. We therefore investigated potential beneficial clinical implications of targeted spirometry for detection of COPD and focus on both pulmonary and extrapulmonary conditions in a contemporary general population cohort.

Methods: We recruited 29 678 randomly selected adults from the Copenhagen General Population Study from 2014 to 2017. Read More

Biomolecules 2022 04 15;12(4). Epub 2022 Apr 15.

Laboratory of Bio-Analytical Chemistry, Research Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Faculty of Pharmacy, Musashino University, 1-1-20 Shinmachi, Nishitokyo 202-8585, Japan.

Although the pathogenesis of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is not yet fully understood, recent studies suggest that the disruption of the intracellular balance of oxidative (such as reactive oxygen species (ROS)) and antioxidant molecules plays an important role in COPD development and progression. Metallothionein is an endogenous metal-binding protein with reported ROS scavenging activity. Although there have been many publications on the protective effects of metallothionein in the kidney and liver, its role in COPD models such as elastase- or cigarette smoke (CS)-induced lung injury is unknown. Read More

Biomed Pharmacother 2022 Apr 19;150:112980. Epub 2022 Apr 19.

Department of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, Shanghai General Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai 200080, China. Electronic address:

Pseudomonas aeruginosa (P. aeruginosa) is commonly isolated from the sputum of COPD patients. However, the precise role of P. Read More

Ann Transl Med 2022 Mar;10(6):277

Department of Preventive Medicine, The School of Public Health, Fujian Medical University, Fuzhou, China.

Background: This study sought to explore the underlying mechanism of long non-coding ribonucleic acid nuclear enriched abundant transcript 1 () and PTEN-induced kinase 1 (PINK1)-mediated mitophagy in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) induced by cigarette smoke (CS) or fine particular matter (PM).

Methods: In total, 30 male Wistar Rats were divided into the following 3 groups: (I) the COPD group exposed to CS (CSM); (II) the COPD group exposed to PM (PMM); and (III) the control (Ctrl) group. Pulmonary function, the enzyme-linked immunoassay analysis results, the histopathology results, and the ultrastructures of the lung tissues were examined in the 3 groups, and expression levels and the mitophagy-related protein PINK1, Parkin, LC3B, and p62 levels were assessed by quantitative reverse transcription PCR (RT-qPCR) and Western blotting. Read More