Acute lung injury (ALI) is a frequent pulmonary complication in critically ill patients. We characterized a murine model of LPS-induced ALI, focusing on Th cells. Following LPS administration, bronchoalveolar lavage lymphocytes, neutrophils, IL-6, TNF-α, and albumin were increased. Analysis of LPS-induced T cells revealed increased Th cell-associated cytokines (IL-17A, -17F, and -22), as well as increased expression of CD69 (a cell activation marker), Foxp3, and CTLA4 in CD4+ T cells. Administration of anti-CTLA4 Ab decreased LPS-induced bronchoalveolar lavage albumin and IL-17A, while increasing CD4+Foxp3+ cell number and Foxp3 expression in CD4+Foxp3+ cells. These data suggest that pulmonary LPS administration promotes CD4+ T cells and that T cell pathways involving CTLA4 contribute to ALI.

Allergic asthma is a chronic inflammatory disorder of the airways characterized by eosinophilic inflammation, airway hyperresponsiveness, and mucus hypersecretion. Adaptive, antigen-dependent immunity is critical for asthma pathogenesis. Allergic asthma may involve adaptive and innate, antigen-independent immune responses. This review discusses the current evidence that associates innate immunity with allergic asthma pathogenesis. In particular, we focus on the role of innate immune cells (eg, bronchial epithelial cells, alveolar macrophages, and dendritic cells) and molecules (Toll-like and nucleotide-binding oligomerization domain-like receptors) in modifying allergic immune responses.

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The University of California CD-ROM Information System replaces the equivalent of 260,000 books of published federal statistics with a CD-ROM-based online information system. The size of this database is currently 270 CD-ROMs (135GB). It contains 1990 U.S. census data (approximately 3,000 items of socio-economic and demographic information, including race-ethnicity, employment, income, educational level, and poverty) for every block and census tract in the U.S., as well as U.S. foreign trade data by commodity from every city in the U.S. to every country in the world. It also contains the digitized map outline boundary data for city blocks for the entire U.S. (census TIGER files).