Guðmundsson, Gunnar

Abstract Rationale Interstitial lung abnormalities (ILA) are abnormal findings on chest CT scans that may represent early-stages of interstitial lung disease. The presence of fibrosis (traction bronchiectasis and/or honeycombing) identifies those with ILA at an increased risk for mortality, however, determining who will progress remains a challenge, and the role of blood-based biomarkers in ILA risk-stratification is unknown. Methods Data from four prospective cohort studies were used to identify associations between plasma proteins measured with DNA aptamers (SomaScan) and ILA, fibrosis, and mortality. The Genetic Epidemiology of COPD Study (COPDGene) was used to identify protein associations, and findings were replicated by meta-analysis of the Age, Gene/Environment Susceptibility-Reykjavik study (AGES-Reykjavik), SubPopulations and InteRmediate Outcome Measures in COPD Study (SPIROMICS), and Framingham Heart Study (FHS). Protein associations with ILA and with fibrotic ILA compared to non-fibrotic ILA were performed using multivariable logistic regression; among those with ILA, Cox proportional hazards models were used to identify protein associations with mortality. Models were adjusted for age, gender, race, BMI, smoking status, pack-year smoking history, and for mortality, COPD. Benjamini-Hochberg false discovery rate p-values <0.05 were considered significant. Results 524 (10.7%) of 4,899 COPDGene participants had ILA, of whom 57 (10.9%) had fibrosis; of 8,146 AGES-Reykjavik, SPIROMICS and FHS participants included in the meta-analysis, 666 (8.2%) had ILA, of whom 198 (29.7%) had fibrosis. In COPDGene, 230 proteins were associated with ILA; the most significant of which were SFTPD (adjusted odds ratio per standard deviation [SD] of protein [OR]=2.21, p = 3.7E-41) and SFTPB (OR = 1.82, p = 7.9E-37). In the meta-analysis, 159 of the ILA-associated proteins were replicated. Of the 230 ILA-associated proteins in COPDGene, 9 were associated with fibrosis, and 5 of these 9 proteins were associated with mortality among those with ILA. The 5 proteins associated with all three outcomes were WFDC2 (ORILA=1.90, p = 2.6E-34; ORFibrosis=2.00, p = 0.0001; adjusted hazards of mortality per SD of protein [HR]=1.59, p = 3.4E-05), GDF15 (ORILA=1.67, p = 3.6E-23; ORFibrosis=1.78, p = 0.0006; HR = 1.63, p = 1.4E-06), SCGB3A1 (ORILA=1.52, p = 4.5e-14; ORFibrosis=1.80, p = 0.0002; HR = 1.25, p = 0.02), TREM1 (ORILA=1.44, p = 1.4e-14; ORFibrosis=1.62, p = 0.001; HR = 1.25, p = 0.02) ICAM5 (ORILA=1.42, p = 1.2e-11; ORFibrosis=1.79, p = 0.0001; HR = 1.31, p = 0.002). In the meta-analysis, 6 of the 9 fibrosis-associated proteins and all 5 ILA mortality-associated proteins replicated. Conclusion This represents the first plasma proteomic screen demonstrating reproducible biomarker associations not only with ILA presence, but also with measures of severity and adverse outcomes. These results provide compelling targets for further study, including their prospective evaluation as clinical biomarkers for early disease identification and prognostication. This abstract is funded by: Multiple Sources

ABSTRACT Inflammation is a major cause of respiratory impairment during Pneumocystis pneumonia. Studies support a significant role for cell wall β-glucans in stimulating inflammatory responses. Fungal β-glucans are comprised of d -glucose homopolymers containing β-1,3-linked glucose backbones with β-1,6-linked glucose side chains. Prior studies in Pneumocystis carinii have characterized β-1,3 glucan components of the organism. However, recent investigations in other organisms support important roles for β-1,6 glucans, predominantly in mediating host cellular activation. Accordingly, we sought to characterize β-1,6 glucans in the cell wall of Pneumocystis and to establish their activity in lung cell inflammation. Immune staining revealed specific β-1,6 localization in P. carinii cyst walls. Homology-based cloning facilitated characterization of a functional P. carinii kre6 ( Pckre6 ) β-1,6 glucan synthase in Pneumocystis that, when expressed in kre6 -deficient Saccharomyces cerevisiae , restored cell wall stability. Recently synthesized β-1,6 glucan synthase inhibitors decreased the ability of isolated P. carinii preparations to generate β-1,6 carbohydrate. In addition, isolated β-1,6 glucan fractions from Pneumocystis elicited vigorous tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α) responses from macrophages. These inflammatory responses were significantly dampened by inhibition of host cell plasma membrane microdomain function. Together, these studies indicate that β-1,6 glucans are present in the P. carinii cell wall and contribute to lung cell inflammatory activation during infection.