Publications by authors named "Jules van den Bosch"

Objectives: Chronic fatigue following inflammatory diseases has been well documented. However, little is known about possible risk factors of chronic post-inflammatory fatigue. The aim of this study was to investigate whether chronic post-inflammatory fatigue after clinical remission of the disease sarcoidosis is associated with specific dimensions of personality, psychological symptoms and baseline levels of stress hormones.

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The production of IgG HLA antibodies after lung transplantation (LTx) is considered to be a major risk factor for the development of chronic rejection, represented by the bronchiolitis obliterans syndrome (BOS). It has recently been observed that elevated levels of IgM HLA antibodies also correlates with the development of chronic rejection in heart and kidney transplantation. This study investigates the relationship between IgM and IgG antibodies against HLA and MICA after lung transplantation.

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When the inflammatory phase of sarcoidosis has resolved, complaints of chronic fatigue frequently persist. Low-grade residual inflammatory activity may play a role in maintaining chronic fatigue. The aim of this study was to compare in vitro cytokine/chemokine production and plasma cytokine/chemokine levels between chronically fatigued and non-fatigued patients with sarcoidosis in clinical remission.

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Background: Passenger leukocytes of donor origin are transferred to the patient resulting in circulatory microchimerism after lung transplantation (LTx). This chimeric state has been shown to occur in the total leukocyte fraction as well as unseparated peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs). In this study we determined the microchimerism levels of B cells, monocytes, natural killer (NK) and T cells and dendritic cell (DC) subsets (mDC1, mDC2 and pDC) during the first year after lung transplantation.

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Background: Patients with sarcoidosis frequently complain of fatigue, even when sarcoidosis has come into clinical remission. The primary aim of this study was to assess the severity of fatigue in patients with sarcoidosis in clinical remission and to characterize it according to the international criteria for chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS). Furthermore, we evaluated whether fatigue is associated with depression and anxiety, health status, and patient-reported sleep quality, and we recorded physical activity levels and muscle strength as objective assessments of fatigue.

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Background: The chitinase-like protein YKL-40 is a serum biomarker in diseases with fibrosis, inflammation and tissue remodelling. Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) is a progressive interstitial lung disease that is hallmarked by these processes. The aim of this study was to investigate the potential of YKL-40 as a prognostic biomarker for survival in IPF patients.

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The HLA class II (DRB1 and DQB1) associations with sarcoidosis have been studied by several groups but often without consistent results. In this paper, we consider the hypothesis that observed inconsistencies relate to distinct, genetically encoded disease phenotypes which differ in prevalence between centres. We therefore typed HLA-DRB1 and DQB1 in 340 UK, 139 Dutch and 163 Japanese sarcoidosis patients and, respectively, 354, 218 and 168 healthy controls from these populations.

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Rationale: Familial clustering of adult idiopathic interstitial pneumonias (IIP) suggests that genetic factors might play an important role in disease development. Mutations in the gene encoding surfactant protein C (SFTPC) have been found in children and families with idiopathic pneumonias, whereas cocarriage of a mutation in ATP-binding cassette subfamily A member 3 (ABCA3) was postulated to have a disease-modifying effect.

Objectives: To investigate the contribution of SFTPC mutations to adult familial pulmonary fibrosis (FPF) and the disease-modifying effect of mutations in ABCA3 within their families.

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Background: The mechanisms that lead to the fibrotic obliteration in bronchiolitis obliterans syndrome (BOS) may involve the interactions between T-helper (Th)1 and Th2 cytokines. The aim of this study is to determine the Th1 and Th2 cytokine and chemokine profiles in serum and exhaled breath condensate (EBC) in lung transplant recipients and to assess their usefulness as biomarkers to predict the development of BOS.

Methods: Serum and EBC from 10 patients with BOS (BOS(pos)) and 10 patients without BOS (BOS(neg)), matched for clinical and demographic variables, were analyzed with a multiplex immunoassay to measure a panel of 27 cytokines and chemokines.

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Venous thromboembolism (VTE), which includes pulmonary embolism (PE) and deep vein thrombosis (DVT), is a common occurrence in patients undergoing surgery and is a potentially fatal complication. Especially after lung transplantation, vascular complications can compromise the function of the allograft and limit survival. Typically, the risk of pulmonary infarction after PE in lung transplant recipients is high because the absence or poor development of the collateral bronchial circulation may predispose lung transplant recipients to pulmonary infarction.

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Background: Pulmonary epithelium is the primary target of injury in the development of bronchiolitis obliterans syndrome (BOS) after lung transplantation. Matrix metalloproteinases (MMP)-8 and -9 already have been implicated in the pathogenesis of BOS. MMP-7, which is involved in the repair of the lung epithelium, has not been studied in this respect.

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Background: Activation of the immune system is suggested to prevent transplant tolerance and to promote the development of bronchiolitis obliterans syndrome (BOS). The innate immune system is activated by the interaction of pathogen-associated molecular patterns of microorganisms with Toll-like receptors (TLRs). Activation of innate immunity via TLRs was shown to be a barrier to the induction of transplantation tolerance after lung transplantation.

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Purpose: Bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) and (18)F-fluorodeoxyglucose ((18)F-FDG) PET can both demonstrate sarcoid activity. To assess whether metabolic activity imaged by (18)F-FDG PET represents signs of disease activity as reflected by BAL, (18)F-FDG PET patterns were compared with BAL cell profiles.

Methods: In this retrospective analysis, 77 newly diagnosed pulmonary sarcoidosis patients underwent BAL and (18)F-FDG PET.

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Objective: To describe the clinical presentation, diagnosis, and prognosis of a cohort of Dutch patients with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF), a serious and rapidly progressive lung disease belonging to the idiopathic interstitial pneumonias.

Design: Retrospective study of patient records.

Method: The data from the clinical presentation, diagnosis, treatment and survival of all patients with IPF, diagnosed in the St.

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Community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) can be caused by a variety of microorganisms but is most frequently associated with Streptococcus pneumoniae and gram-negative bacteria like Haemophilus influenzae. Encapsulated bacteria are able to escape phagocytosis, unless they are bound by immunoglobulin G2 subclass antibodies. These antibodies interact with Fcgamma receptor IIa (Fcgamma-RIIa), thereby facilitating opsonophagocytosis of the encapsulated bacteria.

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Purpose: Angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) and soluble interleukin-2 receptor (sIL-2R) are serological markers, widely used for determining sarcoidosis activity. (18)F-FDG PET has proven to be a sensitive technique in the imaging of sarcoidosis. The aim of this study was to determine sensitivity of (18)F-FDG PET, genotype-corrected ACE and sIL-2R in active sarcoidosis as well as their correlation.

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Objectives: CA 15-3 is a widely used tumor marker for breast cancer. We have investigated whether the MUC1 568 A/G polymorphism can influence CA 15-3 levels in healthy women and patients with breast tumors.

Design And Methods: CA 15-3 was measured in 208 healthy women, in 67 with benign disease, and in 162 women with breast cancer.

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Background: The purpose of this study was to determine the utility of post-transplant serum soluble CD30 levels as a biomarker for the development of the bronchiolitis obliterans syndrome (BOS) after lung transplantation during a tacrolimus/mycophenolate mofetil-based regimen.

Methods: Soluble CD30 (sCD30) concentrations were measured prior to transplantation and in 175 samples taken after transplantation in 7 patients developing BOS and 7 non-BOS patients closely matched for age, underlying diseases, follow-up and gender.

Results: High pre-transplant sCD30 levels dropped significantly after lung transplantation, but in the post-transplant samples no differences could be detected between patients developing BOS or not, and no changes were found prior to or during the development of BOS.

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Background: The development of bronchiolitis obliterans syndrome (BOS) after lung transplantation is associated with viral infections. Natural killer (NK) cells are involved in the lysis of viral infected cells, and their activation is largely controlled by activating and inhibitory killer immunoglobulin-like receptors (KIRs). We hypothesized that KIR ligand incompatibility and recipients' individual KIRs could influence the development of BOS and the incidence of cytomegalovirus reactivation after lung transplantation.

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Purpose: Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) is a lethal lung disease for which no single diagnostic modality is able to evaluate the activity of the disease process. Cis-4-(18)F-fluoro-L: -proline ((18)F-proline) was shown in animal studies to be a reliable marker for fibrosis formation. We tested this candidate radioligand for imaging of fibrogenesis in patients with IPF.

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