Influenza in travelers from Germany returning from abroad: a retrospective case-control study.

Background: Influenza is the most common vaccine-preventable infection among travelers, affecting approximately one percent of those travelling to subtropical and tropical destinations.

Methods: We analysed demographic, travel-related and clinical information from travelers diagnosed with influenza at our travel clinic between January 2015 and March 2020 and influenza-negative controls.

Results: We included 68 travelers diagnosed with influenza and 207 controls.

Smoking cessation assistance among pneumologists and thoracic surgeons in Switzerland: a national survey.

Objective: Smoking, with a prevalence of about 25%-30% in Switzerland, is proven to cause major systemic, avoidable diseases including lung cancer, increasing societies morbidity and mortality. Diverse strong quitting smoking recommendations have been made available providing advice facilitating smoking cessation globally. In other European countries like Germany, clinical practice guidelines for smoking cessation services have been implemented.

Health-related quality of life measured with K-BILD is associated with survival in patients with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis.

Background: Health-related quality of life (HRQoL) assessments and estimates of prognosis are needed for comprehensive care and planning of subsequent treatment in patients with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF). We investigated HRQoL and its association with survival using a disease-specific tool in patients with IPF.

Methods: The patients were recruited from the real-life FinnishIPF study in 2015.

Effects of Omega-3 Polyunsaturated Fatty Acids on the Formation of Adipokines, Cytokines, and Oxylipins in Retroperitoneal Adi-Pose Tissue of Mice.

Oxylipins and specialized pro-resolving lipid mediators (SPMs) derived from polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) are mediators that coordinate an active process of inflammation resolution. While these mediators have potential as circulating biomarkers for several disease states with inflammatory components, the source of plasma oxylipins/SPMs remains a matter of debate but may involve white adipose tissue (WAT). Here, we aimed to investigate to what extent high or low omega (n)-3 PUFA enrichment affects the production of cytokines and adipokines (RT-PCR), as well as oxylipins/SPMs (liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry) in the WAT of mice during lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced systemic inflammation (intraperitoneal injection, 2.

Whole-genome sequencing drug susceptibility testing is associated with positive MDR-TB treatment response.

Until recently, multidrug-resistant TB (MDR-TB) was treated with lengthy and toxic regimens. New three-drug anti-TB regimens raise the question of whether they are sufficiently active for MDR-TB in Central Asia, an MDR-TB hotspot region.In a cohort of rifampicin-resistant (RR) and MDR-TB patients in the Kyrgyz Republic, we investigated the impact of the number of drugs that were tested susceptible by whole-genome sequencing (WGS) and conventional drug susceptibility testing (DST) and used for treatment on the treatment response, defined as 'matches'.

Effects of long-term corticosteroid use on susceptibility to respiratory viruses: a narrative review.

Background: Synthetic glucocorticoids are among the most commonly administered drugs due to their potent immunomodulatory properties. However, they may put patients at risk for infections. Their effect on the incidence of respiratory viral infections (RVIs) remains unclear.

Efficacy and safety of selexipag in patients with inoperable or persistent/recurrent CTEPH (SELECT randomised trial).

Background: SELECT was the first global randomised controlled trial of selexipag with standard of care in patients with inoperable or persistent/recurrent chronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension.

Methods: SELECT was a multicentre, randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled, parallel-group, group-sequential, phase 3 study (ClinicalTrials.gov: NCT03689244).

Evaluation of PD-1 and interleukin-10-receptor expression by T lymphocytes in malignant and benign pleural effusions.

PD-1 (programmed cell death protein-1)/PD-L1 (programmed cell death ligand 1) as well as IL-10 (interleukin-10)/IL-10R (interleukin-10 receptor) interactions play a major role in tumor immune evasion in various malignancies. Several studies investigated the expression of PD-1 on T lymphocytes in pleural effusions (PE) in patients with malignant diseases. However, results in malignant pleural effusions (MPE) compared to benign PE (BPE) are underreported.

Mitochondria as a primary determinant of angiogenic modality in pulmonary arterial hypertension.

Impaired pulmonary angiogenesis plays a pivotal role in the progression of pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) and patient mortality, yet the molecular mechanisms driving this process remain enigmatic. Our study uncovered a striking connection between mitochondrial dysfunction (MD), caused by a humanized mutation in the NFU1 gene, and severely disrupted pulmonary angiogenesis in adult lungs. Restoring the bioavailability of the NFU1 downstream target, lipoic acid (LA), alleviated MD and angiogenic deficiency and rescued the progressive PAH phenotype in the NFU1G206C model.

Senescence of lung mesenchymal stem cells of preterm infants by cyclic stretch and hyperoxia via p21.

Phenotype distortion of lung resident mesenchymal stem cells (MSC) in preterm infants is a hallmark event in the pathogenesis of bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD). Here, we evaluated the impact of cyclic mechanical stretch (CMS) and hyperoxia (HOX). The negative action of HOX on proliferation and cell death was more pronounced at 80% than at 40%.

Fibroblast-derived extracellular vesicles contain SFRP1 and mediate pulmonary fibrosis.

Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) is a lethal chronic lung disease characterized by aberrant intercellular communication, extracellular matrix deposition, and destruction of functional lung tissue. While extracellular vesicles (EVs) accumulate in the IPF lung, their cargo and biological effects remain unclear. We interrogated the proteome of EV and non-EV fractions during pulmonary fibrosis and characterized their contribution to fibrosis.

The Impact of Heat-Not-Burn, E-Cigarettes, and Cigarettes on Small Airway Function.

Introduction: E-cigarettes and heated tobacco products (HTPs) are gaining worldwide significance. The tobacco industry is promoting these products as healthier alternatives to conventional cigarettes.

Methods: In this four-arm crossover study, we examined the acute effects of cigarette smoking, vaping IQOS, or vaping e-cigarettes (with or without nicotine) on hemodynamics, arterial stiffness, and small airways.

It takes two peroxisome proliferator-activated receptors (PPAR-β/δ and PPAR-γ) to tango idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis.

Background: Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) is characterized by aberrant lung epithelial phenotypes, fibroblast activation, and increased extracellular matrix deposition. Transforming growth factor-beta (TGF-β)1-induced Smad signaling and downregulation of peroxisomal genes are involved in the pathogenesis and can be inhibited by peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor (PPAR)-α activation. However, the three PPARs, that is PPAR-α, PPAR-β/δ, and PPAR-γ, are known to interact in a complex crosstalk.

Data Management in Biobanking: Strategies, Challenges, and Future Directions.

Biobanking plays a pivotal role in biomedical research by providing standardized processing, precise storing, and management of biological sample collections along with the associated data. Effective data management is a prerequisite to ensure the integrity, quality, and accessibility of these resources. This review provides a current landscape of data management in biobanking, discussing key challenges, existing strategies, and potential future directions.

Theranostics with somatostatin receptor antagonists in SCLC: Correlation of Ga-SSO120 PET with immunohistochemistry and survival.

Positron Emission Tomography (PET) using the somatostatin receptor 2 (SSTR2)-antagonist satoreotide trizoxetan (Ga-SSO120) is a novel, promising imaging modality for small-cell lung cancer (SCLC), which holds potential for theranostic applications. This study aims to correlate uptake in PET imaging with SSTR2 expression in immunohistochemistry (IHC) and to assess the prognostic value of Ga-SSO120 PET at initial staging of patients with SCLC. We analyzed patients who underwent Ga-SSO120 PET/CT during initial diagnostic workup of SCLC as part of institutional standard-of-care.

Safety and efficacy of rodatristat ethyl for the treatment of pulmonary arterial hypertension (ELEVATE-2): a dose-ranging, randomised, multicentre, phase 2b trial.

Background: The role of serotonin in pulmonary arterial hypertension has been extensively studied in recent decades, with preclinical data strongly indicating involvement in disease pathogenesis; however, clinical studies have yielded mixed results.

Methods: ELEVATE-2 was a phase 2b dose-ranging, randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled, multicentre trial investigating rodatristat ethyl as a treatment for patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension. The study was conducted at 64 sites across 16 countries in Europe and North America.