• Bruce C Trapnell, Brenna C Carey, Kanji Uchida, and Takuji Suzuki.
• Division of Pulmonary Biology, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH, USA. Bruce.Trapnell@cchmc.org
• Curr. Opin. Immunol. 2009 Oct 1;21(5):514-21.

AbstractPulmonary alveolar proteinosis (PAP) is a rare syndrome characterized by accumulation of pulmonary surfactant, respiratory insufficiency, and increased infections. It occurs in various clinical settings that disrupt surfactant catabolism in alveolar macrophages, including a relatively more common autoimmune disease caused by GM-CSF autoantibodies and a rare congenital disease caused by CSF2RA mutations. Recent results demonstrate that GM-CSF is crucial for alveolar macrophage terminal differentiation and immune functions, pulmonary surfactant homeostasis, and lung host defense. GM-CSF is also required to determine the basal functional capacity of circulating neutrophils, including adhesion, phagocytosis, and microbial killing. PAP research has illuminated the crucial role of GM-CSF in innate immunity and led to novel therapy for PAP and the potential use of anti-GM-CSF therapy in other common disorders.

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