PT  - JOURNAL ARTICLE
AU  - Paul Stoll
AU  - Martin Ulrich
AU  - Kai Bratke
AU  - J. Christian Virchow
AU  - Marek Lommatzsch
TI  - Imbalance of pro-inflammatory and anti-inflammatory markers on circulating dendritic cells in COPD
DP  - 2014 Sep 01
TA  - European Respiratory Journal
PG  - 1717
VI  - 44
IP  - Suppl 58
4099  - http://erj.ersjournals.com/content/44/Suppl_58/1717.short
4100  - http://erj.ersjournals.com/content/44/Suppl_58/1717.full
SO  - Eur Respir J2014 Sep 01; 44
AB  - Background: The specific nature of systemic inflammation in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is still poorly understood. Dendritic cells (DCs) control immunity, however, there is little information on specific characteristics of circulating DCs in COPD.Methods:Four-colour flow cytometry was used to compare DC phenotypes in peripheral blood of 54 patients with COPD (spirometric GOLD stages 2 - 4, median FEV1: 38% predicted, median CAT score: 24) with two control groups: 21 current smokers with normal lung function and 21 never-smokers with normal lung function.Results:Concentrations of plasmacytoid and myeloid DCs and the ratio of myeloid to plasmacytoid DCs did not significantly differ between the groups. Markers of systemic inflammation (concentrations of leukocytes, c-reactive protein and fibrinogen in peripheral blood) and some DC surface molecules (such as CD86, BDCA-1 or BDCA-3) were increased compared with never-smoking controls, but did not significantly differ between current smokers with normal lung function and patients with COPD. In contrast, patients with COPD were specifically characterised by a decreased expression of the anti-inflammatory marker PD-L1 on plasmacytoid DCs and an increased expression of the pro-inflammatory marker OX40 ligand on myeloid DCs, as compared with both control groups.Conclusion: COPD is characterised by an imbalance in the expression of pro-inflammatory and anti-inflammatory surface molecules on circulating dendritic cells.