Relationship between eosinophilia and levels of chemokines (CCL5 and CCL11) and IL-5 in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid of patients with mustard gas-induced pulmonary fibrosis.
OBJECTIVE
Therefore, this study was designed to analyze the bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) fluid concentrations of interleukin-5 (IL-5), normal T cell expressed and presumably secreted (RANTES; CCL5), and eotaxin (CCL11) and also to examine the relationship between the percentage and absolute number of the BAL eosinophils and these measured chemokines in patients with sulfur mustard (SM) gas-induced pulmonary fibrosis (PF).


METHODS
Included in this study were fifteen veterans with mustard gas-induced PF and 14 normal veterans as control group.


METHODS
Pulmonary function tests (PFTs), tests for D (LCO), computed tomography (CT) scans of the chest, analyses of BAL fluids for RANTES (CCL5), eotaxin (CCL11), and IL-5 were performed in all cases.


RESULTS
Eosinophilic alveolitis was the predominant feature (p < 0.0001). There were significant differences in CCL5, CCL11, and IL-5 levels of BAL fluid between patients with PF and controls (p < 0.0001, p < 0.0001, and p = 0.001, respectively). The concentrations of CCL5 and CCL11 showed positive correlations with percentage (r = 0.57 and p = 0.03, r = 0.52 and p = 0.04, respectively) and absolute counts (r = 0.54 and p = 0.04, r = 0.53 and p = 0.04, respectively) of BAL eosinophils. There were significant positive correlations between the concentrations of IL-5 and the proportion and total cell number of eosinophils in BAL (r = 0.67 and p = 0.01; r = 0.59 and p = 0.02, respectively) too.


CONCLUSIONS
A significant correlation between BAL CCL5, CCL11, and IL-5 levels and eosinophils in patients with pulmonary fibrosis caused by SM gas inhalation has been demonstrated, suggesting that these C-C chemokines and IL-5 contribute to the recruitment of eosinophils cells in the lung in these victims.
Emad
Ali
A
Department of Internal Medicine, Section of Pulmonary Diseases, Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, P.O. Box 71345-1674 Shiraz, Iran. lungdep@pearl.sums.ac.ir
Emad
Yasaman
Y
D000328:Adult; D001992:Bronchoalveolar Lavage Fluid / Q000737:chemistry / Q000166:cytology / Q000276:immunology; D002619:Chemical Warfare Agents / Q000009:adverse effects*; D054413:Chemokine CCL11 / Q000276:immunology / Q000378:metabolism; D018946:Chemokine CCL5 / Q000276:immunology / Q000378:metabolism; D018925:Chemokines / Q000276:immunology / Q000378:metabolism*; D004797:Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay; D006801:Humans; D015848:Interleukin-5 / Q000378:metabolism*; D009151:Mustard Gas / Q000009:adverse effects*; D011657:Pulmonary Eosinophilia / Q000139:chemically induced* / Q000276:immunology; D011658:Pulmonary Fibrosis / Q000139:chemically induced / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000473:pathology; D012129:Respiratory Function Tests
C515456:CCL11 protein, human; C483024:CCL5 protein, human; D002619:Chemical Warfare Agents; D054413:Chemokine CCL11; D018946:Chemokine CCL5; D018925:Chemokines; C508599:IL5 protein, human; D015848:Interleukin-5; D009151:Mustard Gas