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BMC Pulmonary Medicine
Published in: BMC Pulmonary Medicine 1/2015

Open Access 01-12-2015 | Research article

Quantitative analysis of pathogens in the lower respiratory tract of patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease

Authors: Huaying Wang, Xiao Gu, Yuesong Weng, Tao Xu, Zhongming Fu, Weidong Peng, Wanjun Yu

Published in: BMC Pulmonary Medicine | Issue 1/2015

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Abstract

Background

Bacterial infection of the lower respiratory tract is believed to play a major role in the pathogenesis of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and acute exacerbations of COPD (AECOPD). This study investigates the potential relationship between AECOPD and the load of six common bacterial pathogens in the lower respiratory tract using real-time quantitative PCR (RT-qPCR) in COPD patients.

Methods

Protected specimen brush (PSB) and bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) samples from the lower respiratory tract of 66 COPD patients and 33 healthy subjects were collected by bronchoscopy. The load of Staphylococcus aureus, Klebsiella pneumoniae, Streptococcus pneumoniae, Pseudomonos aeruginosa, Haemophilus influenzeae, and Moraxella catarrhalis were detected by RT-qPCR.

Results

High Klebsiella pneumoniae, Pseudomonos aeruginosa, Haemophilus influenzeae and Moraxella catarrhalis burden were detected by RT-qPCR in both PSB and BALF samples obtained from stable COPD and AECOPD patients compared with healthy subjects. The load of the above four pathogenic strains in PSB and BALF samples obtained from AECOPD patients were significantly higher compared with stable COPD patients. Finally, positive correlations between bacterial loads and inflammatory mediators such as neutrophil count and cytokine levels of IL-1β, IL-6 and IL-8, as well as negative correlations between bacterial loads and the forced expiratory volume in one second (FEV1) % predicted, forced vital capacity (FVC) % predicted, and FEV1/FVC ratio, were detected.

Conclusions

These findings suggest that increased bacterial loads mediated inflammatory response in the lower respiratory tract and were associated with AECOPD. In addition, these results provide guidance for antibiotic therapy of AECOPD patients.
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Metadata
Title
Quantitative analysis of pathogens in the lower respiratory tract of patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease
Authors
Huaying Wang
Xiao Gu
Yuesong Weng
Tao Xu
Zhongming Fu
Weidong Peng
Wanjun Yu
Publication date
01-12-2015
Publisher
BioMed Central
Published in
BMC Pulmonary Medicine / Issue 1/2015
Electronic ISSN: 1471-2466
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1186/s12890-015-0094-z

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