TY - JOUR
T1 - Chronic inflammation is associated with an increased proportion of goblet cells recovered by bronchial lavage
AU - Spurzem, J. R.
AU - Thompson, A. B.
AU - Daughton, D. M.
AU - Mueller, M.
AU - Linder, J.
AU - Rennard, S. I.
PY - 1991
Y1 - 1991
N2 - To evaluate the possibility that bronchoalveolar lavage could provide sufficient respiratory epithelial cells to quantify changes in epithelial cell types associated with chronic inflammation, we examined the epithelial cells obtained in the first infused (20 ml) aliquots that were processed separately from later aliquots, a process known to enrich for bronchial contents. Epithelial cells, including ciliated cells, goblet cells, and fragments of desquamated epithelium, were easily identified after preparation by cytocentrifugation and staining with a modified Giemsa stain. Quantification of the columnar cell types revealed that those with chronic bronchitis and asymptomatic smokers have increased goblet cells as a percentage of the total columnar epithelial cells (chronic bronchitics 36±2 percent, asymptomatic smokers 22±2 percent) compared with normal subjects (9±1 percent, p<0.001, ANOVA). Significantly, the goblet cell percentage was strongly correlated with other measures of bronchitis and measures of airflow obstruction such as the bronchitis index, a visually derived score at bronchoscopy of airway inflammation (r=0.72, p<0.001), the percent neutrophils in the first infused aliquots (r=0.44, p<0.05), and the FEV1 percent (r=-0.74, p<0.001). Thus, bronchoalveolar lavage is capable of providing sufficient bronchial epithelial cells for analysis, and the changes seen in the spectrum of columnar epithelial cells may reflect important underlying pathologic changes.
AB - To evaluate the possibility that bronchoalveolar lavage could provide sufficient respiratory epithelial cells to quantify changes in epithelial cell types associated with chronic inflammation, we examined the epithelial cells obtained in the first infused (20 ml) aliquots that were processed separately from later aliquots, a process known to enrich for bronchial contents. Epithelial cells, including ciliated cells, goblet cells, and fragments of desquamated epithelium, were easily identified after preparation by cytocentrifugation and staining with a modified Giemsa stain. Quantification of the columnar cell types revealed that those with chronic bronchitis and asymptomatic smokers have increased goblet cells as a percentage of the total columnar epithelial cells (chronic bronchitics 36±2 percent, asymptomatic smokers 22±2 percent) compared with normal subjects (9±1 percent, p<0.001, ANOVA). Significantly, the goblet cell percentage was strongly correlated with other measures of bronchitis and measures of airflow obstruction such as the bronchitis index, a visually derived score at bronchoscopy of airway inflammation (r=0.72, p<0.001), the percent neutrophils in the first infused aliquots (r=0.44, p<0.05), and the FEV1 percent (r=-0.74, p<0.001). Thus, bronchoalveolar lavage is capable of providing sufficient bronchial epithelial cells for analysis, and the changes seen in the spectrum of columnar epithelial cells may reflect important underlying pathologic changes.
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=0026342203&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=0026342203&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1378/chest.100.2.389
DO - 10.1378/chest.100.2.389
M3 - Article
C2 - 1864112
AN - SCOPUS:0026342203
SN - 0012-3692
VL - 100
SP - 389
EP - 393
JO - Chest
JF - Chest
IS - 2
ER -