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Pulmonary surfactant-associated proteins and inflammatory factors in obstructive sleep apnea

  • Sleep Breathing Physiology and Disorders • Original Article
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Abstract

Purpose

Pulmonary surfactant (PS) plays roles in promoting the removal of the liquid, host defense, and immune regulation in the tracheal, bronchial, and alveoli epithelium. PS protein expression level can be regulated by oxygen levels and related free radicals. Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is featured with oxygen free radical production for damaging epithelial tissues and thus may affect PS production. The study was to explore the relationship between PS protein and OSA severity.

Methods

We collected serum and bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) samples from 35 OSA patients and 22 healthy subjects. PS-associated proteins and inflammatory factors, including surfactant proteins, HIF-1α, NF-κB, and IL-6, were analyzed. Regression analysis was performed to reveal the relationship between biochemical factors and clinical indexes recorded during PSG monitor.

Results

Lower BALF and surfactant protein (except surfactant protein C or SPC) levels occurred in OSA patients (all p < 0.05 compared to control group). A strongly negative correlation was found between surfactant protein with apnea-hypopnea index (AHI) and other sleeping indexes including ODI3 and ODI4. Similar patterns were found in serum samples, which were strongly correlated with BALF counterparts. Surfactant proteins were further found to have negative regression with inflammatory factors such as HIF-1α, NF-κB, and IL-6.

Conclusions

This study established the relationship between PS-related protein with severity of OSA, plus their relationship with inflammatory factors. Our results provided possibly novel markers in general circulation for disease evaluation of OSA.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. The Center of Hypertension of the People’s Hospital of Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, The Center of Diagnosis, Treatment and Research of Hypertension in Xinjiang Hypertension Institute of Xinjiang, Urumqi, China

    Dongmei Lu, Ayiniger Abulimiti, Ting Wu, Ailigen Abudureyim & Nanfang Li

  2. The Department of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine of the People’s Hospital of Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, Ürümqi, China

    Dongmei Lu

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  1. Dongmei Lu
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  2. Ayiniger Abulimiti
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  3. Ting Wu
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  5. Nanfang Li
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Nanfang Li.

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Funding

No funding was received for this research.

Conflict of interest

All authors certify that they have no affiliations with or involvement in any organization or entity with any financial interest (such as honoraria; educational grants; participation in speakers’ bureaus; membership, employment, consultancies, stock ownership, or other equity interest; and expert testimony or patent-licensing arrangements), or non-financial interest (such as personal or professional relationships, affiliations, knowledge, or beliefs) in the subject matter or materials discussed in this manuscript.

Ethical approval

All procedures performed in the studies involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional and/or national research committee and with the 1964 Helsinki declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards.

Informed consent

Informed consent was obtained from all individual participants included in the study.

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Lu, D., Abulimiti, A., Wu, T. et al. Pulmonary surfactant-associated proteins and inflammatory factors in obstructive sleep apnea. Sleep Breath 22, 99–107 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11325-017-1536-z

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11325-017-1536-z

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