Premature lungs are highly susceptible to lung injuries, leading to bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD). Keratinocyte growth factor (KGF) is produced by the developing lung and may reduce the risk of BPD by preventing injury to the lung epithelium and enhancing its repair. To determine whether KGF concentrations in the airways during the initial phase of hyaline membrane disease are correlated with subsequent development of BPD defined as the need for supplemental oxygen at a postconceptional age of 36 weeks, we obtained tracheal aspirates within 3 hours of birth (Day 0) from 91 intubated neonates with a gestational age of 30 weeks or less. Repeat samples were obtained from 42 neonates within 5 days after birth. KGF in aspirate supernatants was measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. On Day 0, KGF was detected in all but six neonates. A significant increase in KGF concentration was found from the first to the second samples. The highest KGF concentration within 5 days after birth (KGF(max)) was significantly higher in survivors without BPD than in those with BPD. A KGF(max) value higher than 110 pg/ml had a positive predictive value of 95% for absence of BPD. KGF may hold promise for the treatment of very premature neonates.

2002.-Matrix-degrading metalloproteinases may play a role in the pathophysiology of bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BDP). We, therefore, evaluated correlations between gelatinase activities [metalloproteinase (MMP)-2 and MMP-9] or tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinase (TIMP)-1 levels present in the airways during the initial phase of hyaline membrane disease and the onset of BPD. Tracheal aspirates were obtained within 6 h of birth (day 0) from 64 intubated neonates with a gestational age Յ30 wk. Forty-five neonates were resampled on day 3 or 5. Total MMP-2 level measured by zymography fell with time, whereas total MMP-9 level and TIMP-1 levels, assayed by ELISA, increased; the MMP-9 increase correlated with the increase in airway inflammatory cell numbers. Among the parameters measured on day 0, 3, or 5, lower total MMP-2 level, lower birth weight, and higher fraction of inspired oxygen on day 0 were significantly and independently associated with the development of BPD. In conclusion, MMP-9 level and TIMP-1 levels increased after birth but are not linked to BPD outcome. In contrast, low MMP-2 level at birth is strongly associated with the development of BPD. metalloproteinase; lung development; newborn; extracellular matrix PREMATURE NEONATES WITH HYALINE membrane disease are at risk of developing bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD), as a sequel of both the disease and its treatment. The pathogenesis is unclear, but BPD is thought to result from damage to an immature lung. Mechanical ventilation, oxygen therapy, and airway inflammatory responses have all been implicated in the development of BPD (19). These insults appear to interfere with normal lung maturation, which is incomplete at birth. In particular, they appear to alter alveolar formation, on the basis of morphometric studies of severe BPD (3, 24). Alveolar formation is characterized by the multiplication of alveolar septa and the thinning of interalveolar walls, both of which require intense remodeling of the pulmonary extracellular matrix (4). Changes in matrix turnover have been experimentally linked to abnormal alveolar formation (20). The proteinase-antiproteinase balance in the lung is a key factor in harmonious matrix turnover. In particular, matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs), which can synergistically digest the major macromolecules of connective tissue matrices, have been implicated in physiological regulation of lung growth. The MMP gelatinase A (MMP-2) has been shown to play a role in the major collagen turnover that occurs during early postnatal rat lung growth (1, 2). We postulated that MMP-2 might also participate in human lung development and that inadequate MMP-2 levels in premature lungs exposed to insults could contribute to impaired lung growth and thus to BPD. We also postulated that MMPs may be secreted in excess during the inflammatory response associated with hyaline membrane disease and may, therefore, lead to tissue degradation. Gelatinase B (MMP-9) is the main MMP released by inflammatory cells such as neutrophils and alveolar macroph...

Postnatal lung growth disorders may involve imbalance between metalloproteinases and their inhibitors. Inflammatory cell 92-kDa gelatinase overactivity has been reported in adults with lung injury but has not been looked for in neonates. We compared gelatinase activity in neonatal and adult rats and evaluated postnatal lung growth after lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced lung injury. Significant intra-alveolar inflammatory cell recruitment occurred in adults and neonates; cell counts increased 16-fold in adults and 2.7-fold in neonates. Total 92-kDa gelatinase activity was increased in neonates and adults and was significantly correlated to inflammatory cell counts. For a given cell count, 92-kDa gelatinase increased more in neonates than in adults. Morphometric neonatal lung analysis showed that LPS-injured lungs had decreases in absolute values of lung volume (P < 0.03), alveolar surface (P < 0.004), and air space volume (P < 0.03). Doxycycline, a nonspecific metalloproteinase inhibitor, partly inhibited LPS-induced 92-kDa gelatinase overactivity but did not improve LPS-induced alveolar growth disorders. LPS-mediated lung injury in neonatal rats induced both gelatinase B overactivity and alveolar growth disorders, although no causal link between these two effects was demonstrated.