Altered pulmonary capillary permeability in immunosuppressed guinea pigs infected with Legionella pneumophila serogroup 1.

Altered pulmonary capillary permeability in immunosuppressed guinea pigs infected with Legionella pneumophila serogroup 1. Exp Ther Med. 2019 Dec;18(6):4368-4378 Authors: Cai X, Yu N, Ma J, Li WY, Xu M, Li E, Zhang M, Wang W, Chen Y, Kang J Abstract In immunosuppressed hosts, Legionella pneumophila (Lp) infection usually develops into severe pneumonia, which is pathologically characterized by increased vascular permeability and pulmonary edema. At present, mechanisms associated with changes in pulmonary capillary permeability (PCP) and the pathogenesis of pulmonary edema in immunosuppressed hosts with Lp infection are unclear. Therefore, in the present study an animal model of normal and immunosuppressed guinea pigs infected with Lp was established. An isolated perfused lung system was used to investigate the extent of changes in PCP. Pathological and immunofluorescence examinations were performed to explore the mechanism underlying these changes. The results indicated that PCP increased with the highest magnitude in immunosuppressed guinea pigs infected with Lp, with repeated ANOVA indicating synergism between infection and immunosuppression (P=0.0444). Hematoxylin and eosin staining and electron microscopy revealed more severe morphological damages in the lung tissues and pulmonary capillaries of the immunosuppressed animals infected with Lp compared with normal animals infected with Lp. Immunofluorescence analysis showed that immu...
Source: Experimental and Therapeutic Medicine - Category: General Medicine Tags: Exp Ther Med Source Type: research