Open AccessPneumoproteins are associated with pulmonary function in HIV-infected persons
Author(s) -
Diane Jeon,
Emily Chang,
Maggie McGing,
Marlena Hartman-Filson,
Mathew Sommers,
E. J. Lewis,
John R. Balmes,
Daniela Moïsi,
Michael M. Lederman,
Kristine A. Madsen,
Prescott G. Woodruff,
Peter W. Hunt,
Laurence Huang,
Aging Inflammation,
Obstructive Lung Disease Study
Publication year - 2019
Publication title -
plos one
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.99
H-Index - 332
ISSN - 1932-6203
DOI - 10.1371/journal.pone.0223263
Subject(s) - copd , dlco , medicine , viral load , pulmonary function testing , immunology , comorbidity , cohort , pathogenesis , vital capacity , lung , diffusing capacity , human immunodeficiency virus (hiv) , lung function
Background COPD is a common HIV comorbidity, and HIV-infected individuals have a higher incidence and earlier onset of COPD compared to HIV-uninfected individuals. While the pathogenesis of HIV-associated COPD is largely unknown, chronic inflammation may contribute. Four pneumoproteins known to be markers of lung injury and inflammation have been associated with COPD in HIV-uninfected individuals: PARC/CCL-18, SP-D, CC-16, and sRAGE. Objective To determine whether these pneumoproteins are also associated with pulmonary function and COPD Assessment Test (CAT) scores in HIV-infected individuals. Methods Associations between plasma pneumoprotein levels and pulmonary function were determined in a cross-sectional study of otherwise healthy HIV-infected individuals enrolled between September 2016 and June 2017. Covariates included HIV-associated (antiretroviral therapy, CD4 count, and viral load) and COPD-associated (smoking and BMI) covariates. Results Among 65 participants, 78.5% were male, 50.8% had undetectable viral load, and 76.9% were ever-smokers. Mean post-bronchodilator FEV 1 /FVC was 0.71, and mean DLco%predicted was 61%. Higher PARC/CCL-18 was associated with lower DLco%predicted and higher CAT score. Higher CC-16 was associated with lower DLco%predicted and lower FVC%predicted. Conclusions This exploratory analysis is the first to characterize associations between these four pneumoproteins and pulmonary function in an HIV-infected cohort. Our findings suggest the pathogenesis of HIV-associated COPD may differ from that of non-HIV-associated COPD due to HIV-specific inflammatory changes affecting DLco. PARC/CCL-18 is associated with structural and functional pulmonary abnormalities and may be an important COPD biomarker candidate in HIV infection. Our study is a preliminary step toward finding clinically relevant COPD biomarkers in high-risk populations.