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Topic Review
Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome and Precision Medicine
Acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) is a complex medical disorder that can develop in several primary acute disorders, has a rapid time course, and has several classifications that can reflect either the degree of hypoxemia, the extent of radiographic involvement, or the underlying pathogenesis. The identification of subtypes of patients with ARDS would potentially make precision medicine possible in these patients. This is a very difficult challenge given the heterogeneity in the clinical presentation, pathogenesis, and treatment responses in these patients. The analysis of large databases of patients with acute respiratory failure using statistical methods such as cluster analysis could identify phenotypes that have different outcomes or treatment strategies. However, clinical information available on presentation is unlikely to separate patients into groups that allow for secure treatment decisions or outcome predictions. In some patients, non-invasive positive pressure ventilation provides adequate support through episodes of acute respiratory failure, and the development of specialized units to manage patients with this support might lead to the better use of hospital resources. Patients with ARDS have capillary leak, which results in interstitial and alveolar edema. Early attention to fluid balance in these patients might improve gas exchange and alter the pathophysiology underlying the development of severe ARDS. Finally, more attention to the interaction of patients with ventilators through complex monitoring systems has the potential to identify ventilator dyssynchrony, leading to ventilator adjustments and potentially better outcomes.
  • 367
  • 04 Aug 2023
Topic Review
Airway Inflammation in Asthma Pathogenesis
Asthma is a heterogeneous disease characterized by chronic airway inflammation. Group 2 innate lymphoid cells (ILC2) play an important role in the pathogenesis of asthma. ILC2s lack antigen-specific receptors and respond to epithelial-derived cytokines, leading to the induction of airway eosinophilic inflammation in an antigen-independent manner. Additionally, ILC2s might be involved in the mechanism of steroid resistance. Numerous studies in both mice and humans have shown that ILC2s induce airway inflammation through inflammatory signals, including cytokines and other mediators derived from immune or non-immune cells.
  • 270
  • 29 Jun 2023
Topic Review
Alveolar Damage and Dysfunction in Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis
Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) is one of the most aggressive forms of interstitial lung diseases (ILDs), marked by an ongoing, chronic fibrotic process within the lung tissue. IPF leads to an irreversible deterioration of lung function, ultimately resulting in an increased mortality rate. 
  • 154
  • 30 Nov 2023
Topic Review
Alveolar Edema in COVID-19
The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has spread over the world for more than one year. COVID-19 often develops life-threatening hypoxemia. Endothelial injury caused by the viral infection leads to intravascular coagulation and ventilation-perfusion mismatch, alveolar edema also plays a key role in the disease progression. Diffuse alveolar damage (DAD) is the histopathological pattern commonly described in COVID-19. Endothelial barrier disruption induces interstitial flooding via activation of the actin-myosin contractile apparatus. Then alveolar edema leads to hypoxia at the injured alveolar units. Hypoxia in turn inhibits edema fluid clearance, due in part to the disassembly of the keratin intermediate filament network, a fundamental element of the cellular cytoskeleton, therefore destructing the epithelial barrier. Therefore, a long-term hypoxia aggravates the disease by inducing more alveolar edema, which forms a vicious circle.
  • 493
  • 09 Aug 2021
Topic Review
Angiotensin-Converting Enzyme 2 (EC 3.4.15.1)
Angiotensin-Converting Enzyme 2 (ACE2) is an 805 amino acid protein encoded by the ACE2 gene expressed in various human cells, especially in those located in the epithelia.
  • 517
  • 11 Feb 2022
Topic Review
Antibiotic Susceptibility and Biofilm Formation in Cystic Fibrosis
Patients with cystic fibrosis (CF) are repeatedly exposed to antibiotics, especially during the pulmonary exacerbations of the disease. However, the available therapeutic strategies are frequently inadequate to eradicate the involved pathogens and most importantly, facilitate the development of antimicrobial resistance (AMR). The evaluation of AMR is demanding; conventional culture-based susceptibility-testing techniques cannot account for the lung microenvironment and/or the adaptive mechanisms developed by the pathogens, such as biofilm formation.
  • 250
  • 30 Jan 2023
Topic Review
Antidepressants Fluoxetine and Fluvoxamine in Treatment of COVID-19
Mapping non-canonical cellular pathways affected by approved medications can accelerate drug repurposing efforts, which are crucial in situations with a global impact such as the COVID-19 pandemic. Fluoxetine and fluvoxamine are well-established and widely-used antidepressive agents that act as serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRI-s). Interestingly, these drugs have been reported earlier to act as lysosomotropic agents, inhibitors of acid sphingomyelinase in the lysosomes, and as ligands of sigma-1 receptors, mechanisms that might be used to fight severe outcomes of COVID-19. In certain cases, these drugs were administered for selected COVID-19 patients because of their antidepressive effects, while in other cases, clinical studies were performed to assess the effect of these drugs on treating COVID-19 patients. Clinical studies produced promising data that encourage the further investigation of fluoxetine and fluvoxamine regarding their use in COVID-19.
  • 323
  • 08 Apr 2022
Topic Review
Antifungals for Host-Directed Antiviral Therapy
Because of their epidemic and pandemic potential, emerging viruses are a major threat to global healthcare systems. While vaccination is in general a straightforward approach to prevent viral infections, immunization can also cause escape mutants that hide from immune cell and antibody detection. Thus, other approaches than immunization are critical for the management and control of viral infections. Viruses are prone to mutations leading to the rapid emergence of resistant strains upon treatment with direct antivirals. In contrast to the direct interference with pathogen components, host-directed therapies aim to target host factors that are essential for the pathogenic replication cycle or to improve the host defense mechanisms, thus circumventing resistance. These relatively new approaches are often based on the repurposing of drugs which are already licensed for the treatment of other unrelated diseases. 
  • 331
  • 01 Mar 2022
Topic Review
Artificial Intelligence Applications in Interstitial Lung Diseases
Interstitial lung diseases (ILDs) comprise a rather heterogeneous group of diseases varying in pathophysiology, presentation, epidemiology, diagnosis, treatment and prognosis. In the majority of ILDs, imaging modalities and especially high-resolution Computed Tomography (CT) scans have been the cornerstone in patient diagnostic approach and follow-up. The intricate nature of ILDs and the accompanying data have led to an increasing adoption of artificial intelligence (AI) techniques, primarily on imaging data but also in genetic data, spirometry and lung diffusion, among others.
  • 220
  • 20 Jul 2023
Topic Review
Aspiration Pneumonia and Dysphagia in the Elderly
Pneumonia in the elderly has been increasing on an annual basis. To a greater or lesser extent, aspiration is a major contributor to the development of pneumonia in the elderly. Antimicrobials alone are not sufficient for the treatment of pneumonia, and the condition may become intractable or even recur repeatedly. In addition, some patients with pneumonia may have no problems with eating, while others are unable to receive the necessary nutrition due to severe dysphagia. It has been found that pneumonia decreases both the muscle mass and strength of the swallowing and respiratory muscles, a condition named pneumonia-associated sarcopenia. This contributes to a pathophysiological time-axis of aspiration pneumonia and dysphagia in the elderly, in which silent aspiration leads to the development of pneumonia, and further to dysphagia, malnutrition, and low immunity. 
  • 526
  • 09 Oct 2022
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