Cough is a physiological defense reflex for protecting the airways from aspiration and irritation. Thus, roles of environmental triggers are postulated in the pathogenesis of chronic cough. There are several lines of epidemiological evidence demonstrating the relationships between environmental irritant and pollutant exposure and chronic cough. However, positive findings from cross-sectional studies just reflect the protective nature of cough but may not properly address the true impact of environmental triggers. If harmful inhalation is repeated, cough may be seen as chronic but indeed is protective in nature. Therefore, long-term residual outcomes would be the key for understanding the effects of environmental triggers on chronic cough. The present review aims to summarize the associations between chronic cough and environmental pollutants or irritant exposure, with a focus on the long-term residual effects of (1) chronic persistent exposure and (2) acute high-intensity exposure on chronic cough, and also to examine (3) whether childhood irritant/pollutant exposure may increase the risk of chronic cough in adulthood.
Cough ; Cross-Sectional Studies ; Environmental Pollutants ; Epidemiology ; Hypersensitivity ; Inflammation ; Inhalation ; Reflex

Holt-Oram Syndrome is an autosomal dominant disorder characterized by the association of upper-limb abnormalities and congenital heart disease. A woman with no family history of genetic disease underwent antenatal sonography at 27 weeks' menstrual age to screen for fetal anomalies. Ultrasonography revealed abnormalities in the upper limbs. The limb abnormalities included abscence of bilateral thumbs and radius: the left humus was short. Pregnancy termination was performed. The postnatal chromosomal analysis revealed a normal 46XX karyotype and the autopsy finding confirmed the Holt-Oram syndrome. We report a case of Holt-Oram Syndrome in fetus with unaffected parents with brief of the literatures.
Autopsy ; Extremities ; Female ; Fetus ; Heart Defects, Congenital ; Humans ; Karyotype ; Parents* ; Pregnancy ; Radius ; Soil ; Thumb ; Ultrasonography* ; Upper Extremity

Tumor-draining lymph node (TDLN) lymphocytes contain immunologically sensitized to tumor but functionally deficient T cells. The 30 kDa protein antigen, a major secreted protein antigen of Mycobacterium tuberculosis, exhibits strong T cell stimulatory effect. In this study, it examined that the feasibility of using M tuberculosis 30 kDa antigen to stimulate tumor-draining lymph node cells for the generation of specific immune effector cells. Freshly isolated TDLN lymphocytes could directly respond to the 30 kDa antigen alone and their proliferative responses were markedly augmented by stimulation with rIL-2. TDLN cells were stimulated with the 30 kDa antigen for various time intervals and examined for the induction of IFN-r and IL-4 mRNA using RT-PCR. The expression of IFN-r mRNA was greatly augmented after 1 wk, whereas IL-4 mRNA is markedly decreased after 1 wk. Cytotoxic T cell activities induced by the 30 kDa antigen was also evaluated. TDLN cells stimulated with the 30 kDa antigen alone were able to generate remarkable cytotoxic response to K562 or Daudi cell lines after 6 days of culture. And their cytotoxic effects were highly augmented by stirnulation with rIL-2. These results suggest that the 30 kDa antigen of M. tuberculosis may selectively activate Thl cells of TDLN lymhocytes and induce the cytotoxic T cell activities. In conclusion, the 30 kDa antigen can be used as a biologic response modifier in tumor immunology.
Allergy and Immunology ; Cell Line ; Interleukin-4 ; Lymph Nodes* ; Lymphocytes* ; Mycobacterium tuberculosis* ; Mycobacterium* ; RNA, Messenger ; T-Lymphocytes ; Th1 Cells* ; Tuberculosis

Culture of human peripheral T lymphocytes with irnmobilized anti-CD3 rnAb plus IL-2 resulted in a marked proliferation and the enhancing IL-2Ra mRNA expression. The process of the T cell activation involves a series of biochemical events which ultimately lead to the proliferation and IL-2Ra mRNA expression. Although the above results have been observed, the celluar signal mechanisms between the proliferative response and the IL-2Ra mRNA expression through T cell receptor and IL-2 receptor remains unresolved. In the present study, We have used genistein (the selective PTK inhibitor) or chronic PMA treatment (depletion of intracelluar PKC activity), to investigate the role of PTK or PKC both in a synergistic proliferation and in the enhancing IL-2Ra mRNA expression by IL-2/anti-CD3. Genistein (30 ug/ml) completely blocked IL-2 induced T cell proliferation, and inhibited anti-CD3 induced T cell proliferation (93.4%). But genistein downregulated the IL-2Ra mRNA expression by IL-2, anti-CD3 and IL-2/anti-CD3. The chronic PMA treatment failed to inhibit the proliferation and the IL-2R#u mRNA expression by IL-2 alone. But PKC depleted T cells stimulated with anti-CD3 mAb showed the decrease of the proliferation (68.6%) and IL-2Ra mRNA expression. In activated with IL-2/anti- CD3, the proliferative response showed a half of reduction, but the IL-2Ra mRNA expression were not regulated. These results demonstrate that proliferative response to IL-2 appears to be dependent on PTKs activity and independent of PKC involvement, but the IL-2Ra mRNA expression may be required another signals. PTKs and PKC activity may be important in TCR/CD3 signaling. But IL-2/anti-CD3 are coupled up different signal transduction pathways responsible for the synergistic T cell proliferation and the enhancing IL-2Ru mRNA expression.
Cell Proliferation ; Genistein ; Humans ; Interleukin-2* ; Receptors, Antigen, T-Cell ; Receptors, Interleukin-2 ; RNA, Messenger* ; Signal Transduction ; T-Lymphocytes

No abstract available.
Antibody Formation* ; Lymphocytes* ; Mycobacterium tuberculosis* ; Mycobacterium*

Some of the proteins of mycobacteria are preferentially associated with the cell wall and are powerful immunogens, and humoral antibody responses to these mycobacterial antigens may occur in patients with tuberculosis. In this study, Triton X-100 solubilized protein (TSP) antigen was isolated from Mycobacterium tuberculosis H37Rv by overnight shaking with 1% Triton X- 100/PMSF and 10-90% ammonium sulfate precipitation. IgG and IgM antibody levels against TSP, crude protein from the unheated cultrue filtrate (CF#) and 30 kDa antigens were determined in the sera of 80 patients with pulmonary tuberculosis and 99 healthy controls with PPD (+) and (-). High IgG reactivity to TSP and CF antigen was observed in tuberculosis patients. Mean IgG antibody titers against all of three mycobacterial antigens were differed significantly (P<0.01) between patients and controls but IgM showed no difference. By the cut-off value adding 2 standard deviation to the mean absorbance of controls, the sensitivity and specificity of the IgG antibody to TSP antigen were 93.9% and 77.5%. The specificity to TSP antigen was a litttle higher than those obtained by CF and 30 kDa antigen. From the above results, the TSP antigen may be useful for the serodiagnosis of tuberculosis.
Ammonium Sulfate ; Antibody Formation ; Cell Wall ; Humans ; Immunoglobulin G ; Immunoglobulin M ; Mycobacterium tuberculosis* ; Mycobacterium* ; Neptune* ; Octoxynol* ; Sensitivity and Specificity ; Serologic Tests ; Tuberculosis ; Tuberculosis, Pulmonary*

Matrix metalloproteinases are believed to play an important role in tumor invasion and metastasis. But little is known about the role of them in the gastric adenocarcinoma. We investigated the expression of matrix metalloproteinase-1,2,3 in eighty paraffin blocks of the primary gastric adenocarcinoma tissues with immunohistochemistry and analysed their correlation with lymph node metastasis and survival. MMP-1,2,3 were expressed most intensely in the fibroblasts around the tumor stroma. In our study the increased immunoreactivity of MMP-2 only showed statistically significant correlation with lymph node metastasis (P=0.0517, Odd's ratio=2.274). But MMP-1,2,3 all were correlated with survival. Type IV collagen was observed in the vascular basement membranes and tumor basement membranes and showed statistically significant correlation with lymph node metastasis (P=0.0002, Odd's ratio=0.194) and prognosis (P=0.0001). The immunoreactivity of MMP-2 and type IV collagen was inversely correlated (Kendall's Tau-b correlation = 0.37482, P=0.0001). Our results suggest that in human gastric adenocarcinoma the increased immunoreactivity of MMP-2 and the decreased immunoreactivity of type IV collagen has an important role in lymph node metastasis and prognosis. MMP-1,3 are not correlated with lymph node metastasis but correlated with survival. The mechanism responsible for the production of MMP by the host fibroblasts remains obscure and requires further investigation.
Adenocarcinoma* ; Basement Membrane ; Collagen Type IV* ; Fibroblasts ; Humans ; Immunohistochemistry ; Lymph Nodes* ; Matrix Metalloproteinases ; Neoplasm Metastasis* ; Paraffin ; Prognosis*

No abstract available.
Mycobacterium tuberculosis* ; Mycobacterium* ; Polymerase Chain Reaction* ; Sputum*

No abstract available.
Humans* ; Lymphokines* ; Monocytes* ; Mycobacterium tuberculosis* ; Mycobacterium*

No abstract available.
Diabetes Mellitus* ; Tuberculosis*