American journal of respiratory and critical care medicine
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Am. J. Respir. Crit. Care Med. · Jun 2015
IL-17A is Elevated in End-stage COPD and Contributes to Cigarette Smoke-induced Lymphoid Neogenesis.
End-stage chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is associated with an accumulation of pulmonary lymphoid follicles. IL-17A is implicated in COPD and pulmonary lymphoid neogenesis in response to microbial stimuli. We hypothesized that IL-17A is increased in peripheral lung tissue during end-stage COPD and also directly contributes to cigarette smoke-induced lymphoid neogenesis. ⋯ IL-17A in the peripheral lung of patients with severe to very severe COPD may contribute to disease progression and development of lymphoid follicles via activation of CXCL12.