title: Mechanisms of colchicine effect in the treatment of asbestosis and idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis.
abstract: The objective of this study was to evaluate the mechanisms of colchicine action in pulmonary fibrosis. The study included 10 patients with pulmonary fibrosis (idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis 5, asbestosis 4, and scleroderma 1) who had been admitted to Bellevue Hospital Center, a tertiary care public hospital in New York City. We administered colchicine 0.6 mg orally for 12 weeks to patients with pulmonary fibrosis. Symptoms, high resolution CT scans, pulmonary function tests, and bronchoalveolar lavage parameters were compared prior to and after treatment. Results showed declines in dyspnea index, selective improvement in several CT scans, but no statistically significant change in BAL cells, cytokines, fibronectin, or hydroxyproline. However, there was a decline in hydroxyproline in the BAL fluid in 8/10 patients. We concluded that colchicine has a mild antifibrotic effect which may be in inhibiting collagen formation since there was no effect on the inflammation that accompanies fibrosis.
authors.affiliation: Bellevue Chest Service, Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, Department of Medicine, NYU School of Medicine, 550 First Avenue, New York, NY 10016, USA.
authors.forename: D J
authors.initials: DJ
authors.lastname: Addrizzo-Harris
authors.forename: T J
authors.initials: TJ
authors.lastname: Harkin
authors.forename: K M
authors.initials: KM
authors.lastname: Tchou-Wong
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: McGuinness
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Goldring
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Cheng
authors.forename: D W N
authors.initials: DW
authors.lastname: Rom
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D001195:Asbestosis / Q000150:complications* / Q000188:drug therapy*; D015415:Biomarkers / Q000032:analysis; D018893:Bronchoalveolar Lavage; D001992:Bronchoalveolar Lavage Fluid / Q000737:chemistry; D003078:Colchicine / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D016207:Cytokines / Q000032:analysis / Q000187:drug effects; D004341:Drug Evaluation; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006074:Gout Suppressants / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009518:New York; D010092:Oximetry; D011237:Predictive Value of Tests; D011658:Pulmonary Fibrosis / Q000150:complications* / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000473:pathology; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D014797:Vital Capacity / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology
chemical_list: D015415:Biomarkers; D016207:Cytokines; D006074:Gout Suppressants; D003078:Colchicine