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Numerous SO32−/HSO3− fluorescent probes have been reported based on various mechanisms.

Autophagy participates in the regulation of pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH). However, the role of autophagy-related genes (ARGs) in the pathogenesis of the PAH is still unclear. This study aimed to identify the ARGs in PAH via bioinformatics analysis. A microarray dataset (GSE113439) was downloaded from the Gene Expression Omnibus database to identify differentially expressed ARGs (DEARGs). Protein–protein interactions network, gene ontology, and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes enrichment analyses were performed to screen hub genes and the underlying molecular mechanisms of PAH. Finally, the mRNA expression of the hub genes was validated using the GSE53408 dataset. Twenty-six DEARGs were identified, all of which were upregulated. Enrichment analyses revealed that these DEARGs were mainly enriched in the nucleotide-binding oligomerization domain (NOD)-like receptor signaling pathway, PI3K-Akt signaling pathway, response to hypoxia, response to nutrient levels, and autophagy. Among these hub genes, the mRNA expression levels of HSP90AA1, HIF1A, MET, IGF1, LRRK2, CLTC, DNM1L, MDM2, RICTOR, and ROCK2 were significantly upregulated in PAH patients than in healthy individuals. Ten hub DEARGs were identified and may participate in the pathogenesis of the PAH via the regulation of autophagy. The present study may provide novel therapeutic targets for PAH prevention and treatment and expand our understanding of PAH.

Eggplant, a solanaceous crop that has undergone a long period of domestication, is one of the most important vegetables worldwide. The shape of its fruit is an important agronomic trait and consumers in different regions have different preferences. However, a limited understanding of the molecular mechanisms regulating fruit development and shape has hindered eggplant breeding. In this study, we performed morphological observations and transcriptome analysis of long- and round-fruited eggplant genotypes to understand the molecular regulation during the early development of different fruit shapes. Morphological studies revealed that the two varieties already exhibited distinctly different phenotypes at the initial stage of fruit development before flowering, with rapid fruit enlargement beginning on the sixth day after flowering. Comparative transcriptome analysis identified phytohormone-related genes that were significantly upregulated on the day of flowering, indicating they may be involved in regulating the initial stages of fruit development. Notably, SmARF1 showed a sustained upregulation pattern in both varieties, suggesting that it may promote eggplant fruit growth. In addition, several differentially expressed genes of the SUN, YABBY, and OVATE families are potentially involved in the regulation of fruit development or fruit shape. We demonstrated that the SmOVATE5 gene has a negative regulatory function suppressing plant growth and development. In conclusion, this study provides new insights into the molecular regulatory mechanisms of eggplant fruit development, and the genes identified may provide valuable references for different fruit shape breeding programs.

Background Innate lymphoid cells (ILCs), as an important group of innate immunity, could respond rapidly to Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb) infection. In this research, we studied the phenotypic changes of circulatory ILCs in active tuberculosis (TB) disease. Methods We recruited 40 patients with active Mtb infection (TB group) and 41 healthy subjects (NC group), and collected their clinical information and peripheral blood. Circulating ILCs, ILC subsets, dendritic cells (DCs), macrophages, and the production of cytokines in ILCs were tested by flow cytometry (FCM). Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) was used to detect plasma IL-23. Results Compared with healthy control, total ILCs (0.73% vs. 0.42%, P = 0.0019), ILC1 (0.55% vs. 0.31%, P = 0.0024) and CD117+ ILC2 (0.02% vs. 0.01%, P = 0.0267) were upregulated in TB group. The total IL-17+ lymphocytes were elevated (3.83% vs. 1.76%, P = 0.0006) while the IL-22+ lymphocytes remained unchanged. Within ILC subsets, ILC3, CD117+ ILC2 and ILC1 in TB group all expressed increased IL-17 (15.15% vs. 4.55%, 19.01% vs. 4.57%, 8.79% vs. 3.87%, P P = 0.0557). Plasma IL-23 in TB group was positively correlated to IL-17+ ILC3 (r = 0.4435, P = 0.0141), IL-17+CD117+ ILC2 (r = 0.5385, P = 0.0021) and IL-17+ ILC1(r = 0.3719, P = 0.0430). TB group also had elevated DCs (9.35% vs. 6.49%, P + ILCs was related to severer inflammatory status and poorer clinical condition. Conclusions In active TB disease, circulatory ILCs were upregulated and exhibited IL-17-expressing phenotype. This may expand the understanding of immune reaction to Mtb infection.

Eggplant is an important fruit vegetable from the Solanaceae family, with rich nutrition and palatability. Prickles covering plant and fruit calyxes of eggplant are considered undesirable agronomic traits, for they bring trouble and create additional costs for farmers. Prickle is a sharp protrusion that is common in plants, but little is known about its regulatory genes and molecular mechanism of morphogenesis. In this study, two eggplant inbred lines, prickly ‘140’ and prickleless ‘145’ were applied to construct F1 , BC1 , and F2 offspring populations. Genetic analysis results showed that prickle’s absence/presence on various organs in eggplant was controlled by only one dominant nuclear gene. The PRICKLE LOCUS ( Pl ) was fine mapped into a candidate interval with 28.3 Kb on chromosome 6 ultimately by adopting bulked segregant analysis combined with genome walking strategy. An auxin response factor SmARF18 ( Smechr0602826.1 ) was deduced to be a reliable candidate gene encoded by Pl , with a non-synonymous SNP (single nucleotide polymorphism) occurring at the 1633rd nucleotide within the second exon, which encoded the middle region of the protein. The finding here could provide a basis to reveal the molecular regulatory mechanism of prickle morphogenesis in plants and breed prickle-free eggplant cultivars.

The TCP (Teosinte branched1/Cycloidea/Proliferating cell factors), a family of plant-specific transcription factors, plays paramount roles in a plethora of developmental and physiological processes. In the current study, we systematically characterized the putative TCP genes and their response to abiotic stress in eggplant. 30 SmTCP genes were categorized into two subfamilies based on the classical TCP conserved domains. Chromosomal location analysis illustrated the random distribution of putative SmTCP genes along 12 chromosomes of eggplant. Cis-acting elements and miRNAs target prediction showed that they could involve in gene transcriptional regulation of SmTCPs, and three miRNAs (miR319a, miR319b, and miR319c-3p) might be major regulators targeting SmTCPs. Tissue-expression profiles indicated divergent spatiotemporal expression patterns of SmTCPs. qRT-PCR assays showed different expression profiles of SmTCP genes under 4 ℃, drought and ABA treatments, suggesting the possible participation of SmTCP genes in multiple signaling pathways. Furthermore, RNA-Seq data of eggplant anthocyanin synthesis coupled with yeast one-hybrid and dual-luciferase assays suggested the involvement of the SmTCP genes (Smechr0202855.1 and Smechr0602431.1) in the mediation of anthocyanin synthesis. Our study will facilitate further investigation on the putative functional characterization of eggplant TCP genes and lay a solid foundation for the in-depth study of SmTCP genes in the regulation of anthocyanin synthesis.

In the engineering application of high strength steel and surface strengthening steel, fisheye failure is often happened in high cycle fatigue. To explore the effect of fisheye failure on high cycle fatigue properties of materials, a high cycle fatigue life model was established based on the Murakami and Tanaka’s fatigue strength models. The model introduces the error circle to evaluate fisheye size, and discusses the influencing factors of fatigue strength. The results show that the size and depth of fisheye failure will affect performance of materials. The proposed model considering the size and depth of defect quantitatively shows the influence of fisheye details on material performance, and effectively predicts the high/ultra-high cycle fatigue life.

Background Despite improvements made in neonatal care, bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD) is still the most common respiratory disease in preterm infants. The relationship between the blood contents of vitamin D/E in premature infants and BPD is still controversial. Methods Preterm infants were recruited as the research subjects. On the basis of the inclusion and exclusion criteria, a total of 133 eligible cases were finally included. A total of 63 preterm infants with a clear diagnosis of BPD and 5 preterm infants who died before the diagnosis of BPD were in the case group, and 65 non-BPD preterm infants with equivalent baseline characteristics were in the control group. The BPD group included 38 cases in Grade Ⅰ, 18 cases in Grade Ⅱ, and 12 cases in Grade Ⅲ. The contents of vitamin D and E in the cord blood of different groups were detected by high-performance liquid chromatography and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Correlation analysis adopted the Pearson correlation analytic method. Results The serum vitamin D and E levels at birth were remarkably lower in the BPD group than the non-BPD group, both of which were also correlated with the severity of BPD. The vitamin D and E contents were negatively correlated with the oxygen support duration required for premature infants with BPD. Conclusion This study deepens our understanding of the field of BPD pathogenesis by demonstrating an association between vitamin D/E deficiency and BPD severity, suggesting that vitamin D and E might have potential clinical value in the prognosis and treatment of BPD.

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to introduce error ellipse into the bootstrap method to improve the reliability of small samples and the credibility of the S-N curve. Design/methodology/approach Based on the bootstrap method and the reliability of the original samples, two error ellipse models are proposed. The error ellipse model reasonably predicts that the discrete law of expanded virtual samples obeys two-dimensional normal distribution. Findings By comparing parameters obtained by the bootstrap method, improved bootstrap method (normal distribution) and error ellipse methods, it is found that the error ellipse method achieves the expansion of sampling range and shortens the confidence interval, which improves the accuracy of the estimation of parameters with small samples. Through case analysis, it is proved that the tangent error ellipse method is feasible, and the series of S-N curves is reasonable by the tangent error ellipse method. Originality/value The error ellipse methods can lay a technical foundation for life prediction of products and have a progressive significance for the quality evaluation of products.

PurposeCaspase recruitment domain containing protein 9 (CARD9) has been demonstrated to be a pro-tumor factor in various cancers. However, our previous study found a significant decrease of CARD9 in malignant pleural effusion compared with benign pleural effusion. So we investigated the role of CARD9 in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and its working mechanism. Materials and MethodsImmunohistochemistry, western blot, and quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction were used to detect the expression of CARD9 in specimens of NSCLC patients. The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) databasewas also used to analyze the expression of CARD9 in NSCLC and its predicting value for prognosis. Immunofluorescence was used for CARD9 cellular location. Cell growth assay, clonal formation assay, wound healing assay, matrigel invasion assay, and flow cytometry were used to test cell proliferation, migration, invasion, apoptosis, and cycle progression of NSCLC cells with CARD9 knockdown or CARD9 overexpression. Co-immunoprecipitation was used to identify the interaction between CARD9 and B-cell lymphoma 10 (BCL10). SB203580 was used to inhibit p38 activation.ResultsCARD9 was decreased in NSCLC tissues compared with normal tissues; low CARD9 expression was associated with poor survival. CARD9 was expressed both in tumor cells and macrophages. Downregulation of CARD9 in NSCLC cells enhanced the abilities of proliferation, invasion and migration via activated MAPK/p38 signaling, while overexpression of CARD9 presented antitumor effects. BCL10 was identified to interact with CARD9.ConclusionWe demonstrate that CARD9 is an independent prognostic factor in NSCLC patients and inhibits proliferation, migration, and invasion by suppressing MAPK/p38 pathway in NSCLC cells.

There are scarce studies on radiofrequency catheter ablation (RFCA) of atrial flutter (AFL) in the pediatric population. This study therefore aimed to investigate the clinical features and RFCA of AFL in children with or without congenital heart disease. Data from 72 consecutive children (44 males; mean age, 6.1 ± 3.8 [0.9–15.0] years; and mean weight, 23.6 ± 13.9 [8.1–72.0] kg) undergoing RFCA for AFL from 2009 to 2019 were retrospectively reviewed. Thirty-three patients had normal cardiac structure and 39 had congenital heart disease (CHD) of whom 29 had undergone surgical repair and developed AFL at a mean of 3.1 ± 2.5 years later. Fifty-nine patients (84%) presented with persistent AFL. Five patients (7%) had cardiac dysfunction with LVEF of 30–48%, which normalized after ablation. Overall, acute success rate of ablation was 99% and recurrence rate was 18% at 0.5–10 years of follow-up. No procedure-related complications were identified. All 33 patients with normal cardiac structure had cavotricuspid isthmus (CTI)-dependent AFL. Among patients who had undergone corrective surgery for CHD, 15 (52%) had CTI-dependent AFL, 4 (14%) had surgical incisional scar reentrant AFL and the remaining 10 (34%) had both CTI-dependent and scar reentrant AFL. Success rate (100% vs. 97%, P = 1.0000) and recurrence rate (21% vs. 16%, P = 0.7008) were similar between patients with and without CHD. Overall, sick sinus syndrome (SSS) was found in 42% (30/72) of patients with AFL, with an incidence of 39% (13/33) among patients with normal cardiac structure and 59% (17/29) among those who underwent surgery for congenital defects. Permanent pacemakers (PM) were implanted in 53% (16/30) of patients with SSS after ablation. RFCA therefore appeared efficacious and safe for treatment of pediatric AFL. The mechanisms underlying AFL after corrective surgery for CHD are complex, including CTI-dependent macro-reentrant, scar reentrant, or a combination of both. SSS is not rare among pediatric AFL cases, with approximately half of patients needing PM implantation.

Background Chromodomain helicase DNA-binding protein 4 (CHD4) has been shown to contribute to DNA repair and cell cycle promotion; however, its roles in cancer initiation and progression remain largely unknown. This study aimed to demonstrate the role of CHD4 in the development of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) and determine the potential mechanisms of action. Methods By using immunohistochemistry, the expression levels were evaluated in both cancer and non-cancerous tissues. Subsequently, CHD4 knockdown and overexpression strategies were employed to investigate the effects of CHD4 on cell proliferation, migration, along with the growth and formation of tumors in a xenografts mouse model. The protein expression levels of CHD4, PHF5A and ROCK/RhoA markers were determined by Western blot analysis. Results Compared with non-cancerous tissues, CHD4 was overexpressed in cancer tissues and CHD4 expression levels were closely related to clinical parameters of NSCLC patients. In H292 and PC-9 cell lines, CHD4 overexpression could promote the proliferative and migratory potential of NSCLC cells. Furthermore, down-regulation of CHD4 could reduce the proliferative and migratory ability in A549 and H1299 cell lines. Meanwhile, knockdown of CHD4 could decrease the tumorigenicity in nude mice. Finally, we demonstrated that one of the mechanisms underlying the promotive effect of CHD4 on NSCLC proliferation and migration may be through its interaction with PHD finger protein 5A (PHF5A) and subsequent activation of the RhoA/ROCK signaling pathway. Conclusions CHD4, which is highly expressed in cancer tissue, could be an independent prognostic factor for NSCLC patients. CHD4 plays an important role in regulating the proliferative and migratory abilities of NSCLC via likely the RhoA/ROCK pathway by regulating PHF5A.

The construction of multifunctional nano-enzymes is a feasible strategy for fighting multi-drug resistant (MDR) bacterial biofilm-associated infections. Extracellular DNA (eDNA) is an important functional part of biofilm formation, including the initial adherence of bacteria to subsequent development and eventual maturation. A nano-enzyme platform of graphene oxide-based nitrilotriacetic acid-cerium(IV) composite (GO-NTA-Ce) against bacterial biofilm infection has been developed. When located at the site of bacteria-associated infection, GO-NTA-Ce could inhibit the biofilm formation and effectively disperse the formed biofilm by degrading the eDNA. In addition to Ce-mediated deoxyribonuclease (DNase)-like activity, near-infrared laser irradiation of GO-NTA-Ce could produce local hyperthermia to kill the bacteria that lost the protection by the biofilm matrix. In addition, graphene is also a new green broad-spectrum antimicrobial material that can exert its antimicrobial effects through physical damage and chemical damage. In short, our GO-NTA-Ce nano-enzyme platform is capable of effectively eradicating drug-resistant bacterial biofilm infections through the triple action of DNase-like enzyme properties, photothermal therapy, and graphene-based antimicrobial activity, and the nano-composite has excellent potential for the treatment of MDR bacterial biofilm infections.

Bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD) is a respiratory dysfunction caused by poor lung bronchial development, which may lead to long-term lung disease, threatening the lives of children. Studies have shown that premature infants with low vitamin D are highly associated with BPD. In this study, we aim to obtain insights into whether early vitamin D supplementation could prevent BPD in preterm infants.A total of 112 preterm infants were randomly divided into two groups: the control and vitamin D supplementation (VD) group. The VD group received vitamin D (800 IU/day) within 48 h at birth for consecutively 28 days. The serum levels of 25(OH)DThe occurrence of BPD was decreased in the VD group compared with the control. The decreased serum 25(OH)DWe demonstrated that early vitamin D supplementation could significantly reduce BPD incidence in preterm infants. We showed that early vitamin D supplementation could significantly increase serum level of 25(OH)DFirstly, a larger sample size will be needed to be included to gain a comprehensive understanding of the protective effects of vitamin D and BPD mechanistically in preterm infants. Secondly, the pathophysiological process of BPD will need to be studied. In addition, the pathways that vitamin D is responsible for, need to be further researched.

L-type Ca

One dimensional ferroelectric materials have important applications in the field of micro-nanoelectronic devices. In this work, three kinds of ferroelectric niobates (KNbO3, KSr2Nb5O15, K0.5Bi2.5Nb2O9) with different structures (perovskite, tetragonal tungsten bronze-TTB, bismuth niobates layer structure-BNLS) have been synthesized by using the one dimensional Nb2O5 as precursor through topochemical molten salt synthesis (TMSS) method. Among them, perovskite-KNbO3 can maintain the one dimensional morphology of the Nb2O5 template. TTB-KSr2Nb5O15 partly inherited the template morphology, but BNLS-K0.5Bi2.5Nb2O9 had the totally different morphology with the Nb2O5 precursors. Through the comparison and analysis of the crystal structure of the three target noibates, it indicated that the inheritance of template’s morphology depended on the product’s reassembly modes of the [NbO6] octahedron. Perovskite type ANbO3 (A = K, Na, Li) with the corner-shared [NbO6] octahedron was most conducive to the succession of the morphology of the Nb2O5 template in the three products. Relevant results can help us to choose templates and target products more rationally for synthesis of one dimensional nanomaterials through TMSS method.

Haiyan Ge,1,* Xuanqi Liu,1,* Wenchao Gu,2 Xiumin Feng,3,4 Fengying Zhang,5 Fengfeng Han,6 Yechang Qian,7 Xiaoyan Jin,8 Beilan Gao,9 Li Yu,10 Hong Bao,11 Min Zhou,12 Shengqing Li,13 Zhijun Jie,14 Jian Wang,15 Zhihong Chen,16 Jingqing Hang,5 Jingxi Zhang,3 Huili Zhu1 1Department of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, Huadong Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, People’s Republic of China; 2Department of Respiratory Medicine, Pudong New District People’s Hospital, Shanghai, People’s Republic of China; 3Department of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, Changhai Hospital Affiliated to Navy Military Medical University, Shanghai, People’s Republic of China; 4Department of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, Changji Branch of First Affiliated Hospital of Xinjiang Medical University, Xinjiang, People’s Republic of China; 5Department of Respiratory Medicine, Putuo District People’s Hospital, Shanghai, People’s Republic of China; 6Department of Respiratory Medicine, Xinhua Hospital, Shanghai Jiaotong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, People’s Republic of China; 7Baoshan District Hospital of Integrated Traditional Chinese and Western Medicine, Shanghai, People’s Republic of China; 8Department of Respiratory Medicine, Tongren Hospital, Shanghai Jiaotong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, People’s Republic of China; 9Department of Respiratory Medicine, Shanghai Pulmonary Hospital, Tongji University, Shanghai, People’s Republic of China; 10Department of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, Tongji Hospital, Tongji University School of Medicine, Shanghai, People’s Republic of China; 11Department of Respiratory Medicine Shanghai Pudong Hospital, Fudan University Pudong Medical Center, Shanghai, People’s Republic of China; 12Department of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, Ruijin Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, People’s Republic of China; 13Department of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, Huashan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, People’s Republic of China; 14Department of Respiratory Medicine, Shanghai Fifth’s Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, People’s Republic of China; 15Department of Respiratory Medicine, Shanghai Ninth’s Hospital, Shanghai Jiaotong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, People’s Republic of China; 16Department of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, Zhongshan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, People’s Republic of China*These authors contributed equally to this workCorrespondence: Huili Zhu Email zhuhuili001@126.comJingxi Zhang Email jingxizhang2000@126.comBackground: Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) often coexists with multiple comorbidities which may have a significant impact on acute exacerbations of patients. At present, what kind of comorbidities affects acute exacerbations and how comorbidities lead to poor prognosis are still controversial. The purpose of our study is to determine the impact of comorbidities on COPD exacerbation and establish an acute exacerbation risk assessment system related to comorbidities.Methods: A total of 742 COPD patients participated in the Shanghai COPD Investigation on Comorbidity Program (SCICP, ChiCTR2000030911). Finally, the baseline information of 415 participants and one-year follow-up data were involved in the analysis. We collected hemogram indices, pulmonary function tests and acute exacerbation of COPD with regular medical follow-up. Q-type cluster analysis was used to determine the clusters of participants. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis was constructed to assess the ability of indicators in predicting acute exacerbations.Results: Almost 65% of the population we investigated had at least one comorbidity. The distribution and incidence of comorbidities differed between exacerbation group and non-exacerbation group. Three comorbidity clusters were identified: (1) respiratory, metabolic, immune and psychologic disease (non-severe cases); (2) cardiovascular and neoplastic disease (severe cases); (3) less comorbidity. Different sub-phenotypes of COPD patients showed significant distinction in health status. Anxiety (OR=5.936, P=0.001), angina (OR=10.155, P=0.025) and hypertension (OR=3.142, P=0.001) were found to be independent risk factors of exacerbation in a year. The novel risk score containing BODEx and four diseases showed great prognostic value of COPD exacerbation in developing sample.Conclusion: Our study detailed the major interaction between comorbidities and exacerbation in COPD. Noteworthily, a novel risk score using comprehensive index – BODEx – and comorbidity parameters can identify patients at high risk of acute exacerbation.Keywords: chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, exacerbation, comorbidity, risk score

BACKGROUND This study was conducted to analyze the influences of stent surface area (SSA), platelet distribution width (PDW), and the joint effect of these 2 risk factors on major adverse cardiovascular events (MACEs) in patients treated with percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) together with drug-eluting stent (DES) implantation. METHODS Based on a cross-sectional survey conducted between 2011 and 2012, a prospective cohort study was enrolled consiting of 442 patients who had undergone PCI with DES implantation. We categorized the participants into 4 subgroups according to PDW and SSA. Cox proportional hazards models were applied to explore the correlation of PDW and SSA with MACE incidence. RESULTS During the 12 months of follow-up time, 87 patients experienced MACEs, which included 4 deaths (4.6%), 5 nonfatal myocardial infarctions (MIs) (5.75%), 9 ischemic strokes (10.34%), and 73 clinically relevant bleeding episodes (83.91%). The risks of MACEs were decreased by SSA and increased by PDW. However, the association of PDW or SSA with MACE was not statistically significant. Compared with the patients with PDW ≥13.5% and SSA

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a chronic inflammatory disease characterized by airway limitation accompanied with infiltration of inflammatory cells. Mucosal associated invariant T (MAIT) cells can recognize bacteria and play an important role in controlling host immune responses by producing cytokines. In this study, we characterized the function and the ability of MAIT cells to secrete cytokines measured by flow cytometry. In COPD patients, MAIT cells have the ability to produce more IL-17 and less IFN-γ compared to healthy individuals. We found that HLA-DR expression levels reflected the degree of inflammation and the proportion of IL-17 was significantly correlated with lung function in peripheral blood. In addition, we found that MAIT cells were highly expressed in the lung, and the increased expression of CXCR2, CXCL1 indicated that MAIT cells had the potential to migrate to inflammatory tissues. This evidence implies that MAIT cells may play a potential role in COPD immunopathology.