Outcome and safety 90 days after combined airway valve treatment of the right upper and middle lobes in patients with severe pulmonary emphysema.

Background: In COPD patients with severe right-sided emphysema, complete major and incomplete minor fissure, implantation of one-way valves in both the right upper (RUL) and middle lobes (ML) is a possible approach for endoscopic lung volume reduction. The aim of this retrospective analysis was to evaluate the response to therapy and the complication rate at 90 days (90d-FU) after combined RUL-ML valve implantation.

Methods: This retrospective, monocentric study included all patients from the Thoraxklinik Heidelberg who underwent RUL-ML valve treatment between 2012 and 2023 with available follow-up data.

Impact of COVID-19 infection on lung function and nutritional status amongst individuals with cystic fibrosis: A global cohort study.

Background: Factors associated with severe COVID-19 infection have been identified; however, the impact of infection on longer-term outcomes is unclear. The objective of this study was to examine the impact of COVID-19 infection on the trajectory of lung function and nutritional status in people with cystic fibrosis (pwCF).

Methods: This is a retrospective global cohort study of pwCF who had confirmed COVID-19 infection diagnosed between January 1, 2020 and December 31, 2021.

Evaluation of treatment response with serial CT in patients with non-tuberculous mycobacterial pulmonary disease.

Objectives: In patients with non-tuberculous mycobacterial pulmonary disease (NTM-PD), the response to treatment is evaluated based on microbiological, clinical, and radiological data. However, little is known about the dynamics of CT findings. The aim of this study was to evaluate CT changes in NTM-PD in order to define radiological criteria for treatment success.

Primary Ciliary Dyskinesia in Adult Bronchiectasis: Data from the German Bronchiectasis Registry PROGNOSIS.

Background: Primary ciliary dyskinesia (PCD) is a rare genetic disorder caused by the malfunction of motile cilia and a specific etiology of adult bronchiectasis of unknown prevalence. A better understanding of the clinical phenotype of adults with PCD is needed to identify individuals for referral to diagnostic testing.

Research Question: What is the frequency of PCD among adults with bronchiectasis; how do people with PCD differ from those with other etiologies; and which clinical characteristics are independently associated with PCD?

Study Design And Methods: We investigated the proportion of PCD among the participants of the Prospective German Non-CF-Bronchiectasis Registry (PROGNOSIS) study; applied multiple imputation to account for missing data in 64 (FEV), 58 (breathlessness), 26 (pulmonary exacerbations), and two patients (BMI), respectively; and identified predictive variables from baseline data using multivariate logistic regression analysis.

ADPGK-AS1 long noncoding RNA switches macrophage metabolic and phenotypic state to promote lung cancer growth.

Long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) influence the transcription of gene networks in many cell types, but their role in tumor-associated macrophages (TAMs) is still largely unknown. We found that the lncRNA ADPGK-AS1 was substantially upregulated in artificially induced M2-like human macrophages, macrophages exposed to lung cancer cells in vitro, and TAMs from human lung cancer tissue. ADPGK-AS1 is partly located within mitochondria and binds to the mitochondrial ribosomal protein MRPL35.

The HDAC2-SP1 Axis Orchestrates Protumor Macrophage Polarization.

Unlabelled: Tumor-associated macrophages (TAM), including antitumor M1-like TAMs and protumor M2-like TAMs, are transcriptionally dynamic innate immune cells with diverse roles in lung cancer development. Epigenetic regulators are key in controlling macrophage fate in the heterogeneous tumor microenvironment. Here, we demonstrate that the spatial proximity of HDAC2-overexpressing M2-like TAMs to tumor cells significantly correlates with poor overall survival of lung cancer patients.

Survival-Adjusted FEV1 and BMI Percentiles for Patients with Cystic Fibrosis before the Era of Triple CFTR Modulator Therapy in Germany.

Background: Pulmonary disease is the major cause for morbidity and mortality in cystic fibrosis (CF). In CF, forced expiratory volume in 1 s (FEV1) referenced against a healthy population (FEV1%predicted) and body mass index (BMI) do not allow for the comparison of disease severity across age and gender.

Objectives: We aimed to determine updated FEV1 and BMI percentiles for patients with CF and to study their dependence on mortality attrition.

Changes in Microbiome Dominance Are Associated With Declining Lung Function and Fluctuating Inflammation in People With Cystic Fibrosis.

Airway inflammation and microbiome dysbiosis are hallmarks of cystic fibrosis () lung disease. However, longitudinal studies are needed to decipher which factors contribute to the long-term evolution of these key features of We therefore evaluated the relationship between fluctuation in microbiome and inflammatory parameters in a longitudinal study including a short- (1-year) and a long-term (3+ years) period. We collected 118 sputum samples from 26 adult patients and analyzed them by 16S rRNA gene sequencing.

Relationship between airway dysbiosis, inflammation and lung function in adults with cystic fibrosis.

Airway dysbiosis has been associated with lung disease severity in patients with cystic fibrosis (CF). However, the relationship between dysbiosis, airway inflammation and lung function impairement remains poorly understood. The aim of this study was therefore to determine how the structure of the sputum microbiota, airway inflammation markers and spirometry are related in patients with CF.

Spatial Density and Distribution of Tumor-Associated Macrophages Predict Survival in Non-Small Cell Lung Carcinoma.

The respective antitumoral and protumoral roles of M1 and M2 tumor-associated macrophages (TAM) typify the complexity of macrophage function in cancer. In lung cancer, density and topology of distinct TAM phenotypes at the tumor center (TC) versus the invasive margin (IM) are largely unknown. Here, we investigated TAM subtype density and distribution between TC and IM in human lung cancer and TAM associations with overall survival.

Spatial and Temporal Heterogeneity of Panel-Based Tumor Mutational Burden in Pulmonary Adenocarcinoma: Separating Biology From Technical Artifacts.

Background: Tumor mutational burden (TMB) is an emerging biomarker used to identify patients who are more likely to benefit from immuno-oncology therapy. Aside from various unsettled technical aspects, biological variables such as tumor cell content and intratumor heterogeneity may play an important role in determining TMB.

Methods: TMB estimates were determined applying the TruSight Oncology 500 targeted sequencing panel.

Global DNA methylation reflects spatial heterogeneity and molecular evolution of lung adenocarcinomas.

Lung adenocarcinoma (ADC) is the most prevalent subtype of lung cancer and characterized by considerable morphological and mutational heterogeneity. However, little is known about the epigenomic intratumor variability between spatially separated histological growth patterns of ADC. In order to reconstruct the clonal evolution of histomorphological patterns, we performed global DNA methylation profiling of 27 primary tumor regions, seven matched normal tissues and six lymph node metastases from seven ADC cases.

Interleukin-1 is associated with inflammation and structural lung disease in young children with cystic fibrosis.

Background: Little is known about the role of interleukin (IL)-1 in the pathogenesis of cystic fibrosis (CF) lung disease. This study investigated the relationship between IL-1 signalling, neutrophilic inflammation and structural lung changes in children with CF.

Methods: Bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALf) from 102 children with CF were used to determine IL-1α, IL-1β, IL-8 levels and neutrophil elastase (NE) activity, which were then correlated to structural lung changes observed on chest computed tomography (CT) scans.

Elastase activity on sputum neutrophils correlates with severity of lung disease in cystic fibrosis.

Neutrophil elastase (NE) is a key risk factor for severity of cystic fibrosis (CF) lung disease. Recent studies identified increased NE activity on the surface of airway neutrophils from CF-like mice and patients with CF. However, the role of surface-bound NE in CF lung disease remains unknown.

One time quantitative PCR detection of Pseudomonas aeruginosa to discriminate intermittent from chronic infection in cystic fibrosis.

Background: Chronic airway infection with Pseudomonas aeruginosa is a major risk factor of progression of lung disease in patients with cystic fibrosis (CF). Chronic P. aeruginosa infection evolves from intermittent infection that is amenable to antibiotic eradication, whereas chronically adapted P.

Epigenetically Regulated Chromosome 14q32 miRNA Cluster Induces Metastasis and Predicts Poor Prognosis in Lung Adenocarcinoma Patients.

Most lung cancer deaths are related to metastases, which indicates the necessity of detecting and inhibiting tumor cell dissemination. Here, we aimed to identify miRNAs involved in metastasis of lung adenocarcinoma as prognostic biomarkers and therapeutic targets. To that end, lymph node metastasis-associated miRNAs were identified in The Cancer Genome Atlas lung adenocarcinoma patient cohort (sequencing data; = 449) and subsequently validated by qRT-PCR in an independent clinical cohort ( = 108).

Prevalence and clinical association of gene mutations through multiplex mutation testing in patients with NSCLC: results from the ETOP Lungscape Project.

Background: Reported prevalence of driver gene mutations in non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) is highly variable and clinical correlations are emerging. Using NSCLC biomaterial and clinical data from the European Thoracic Oncology Platform Lungscape iBiobank, we explore the epidemiology of mutations and association to clinicopathologic features and patient outcome (relapse-free survival, time-to-relapse, overall survival).

Methods: Clinically annotated, resected stage I-III NSCLC FFPE tissue was assessed for gene mutation using a microfluidics-based multiplex PCR platform.

Spatial distribution of EGFR and KRAS mutation frequencies correlates with histological growth patterns of lung adenocarcinomas.

Multiregional analysis provided first indications for morphological and molecular heterogeneity in lung adenocarcinomas (ADCs), but comprehensive morpho-molecular comparisons are still lacking. The purpose of our study was to investigate the spatial distribution of EGFR and KRAS alterations systematically throughout whole tumor cross-sections in correlation with the tumor cell content and the histopathological patterns. Central sections of 19 ADCs were subdivided into 467 segments of 5 mm × 5 mm.

Intravenous treprostinil infusion via a fully implantable pump for pulmonary arterial hypertension.

Objectives: Parenteral prostanoids infused via external pumps are well-established pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) treatments. However, local side-effects and systemic infections restrict their use. The purpose of this study was to investigate the safety of a fully implantable treprostinil infusion pump (LENUS Pro) in patients with PAH.

Automated 3D Volumetry of the Pulmonary Arteries based on Magnetic Resonance Angiography Has Potential for Predicting Pulmonary Hypertension.

Purpose: To demonstrate feasibility of automated 3D volumetry of central pulmonary arteries based on magnetic resonance angiography (MRA), to assess pulmonary artery volumes in patients with pulmonary hypertension compared to healthy controls, and to investigate the potential of the technique for predicting pulmonary hypertension.

Methods: MRA of pulmonary arteries was acquired at 1.5T in 20 patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension and 21 healthy normotensive controls.