To determine the role of respiratory epithelial cells in the inflammatory response to inhaled endotoxin, we selectively inhibited NF-kappa B activation in the respiratory epithelium using a mutant I kappa B-alpha construct that functioned as a dominant negative inhibitor of NF-kappa B translocation (dnI kappa B-alpha). We developed two lines of transgenic mice in which expression of dnI kappa B...

BACKGROUND Lipoteichoic acid (LTA), a gram-positive bacterial outer membrane component, can cause septic shock. Our previous studies showed that the gram-negative endotoxin, lipopolysaccharide (LPS), could induce surfactant protein-A (SP-A) production in human alveolar epithelial (A549) cells. OBJECTIVES In this study, we further evaluated the effect of LTA on SP-A biosynthesis and its possib...

Obstructive sleep apnea-hypopnea syndrome (OSAHS) is a complex chronic inflammatory respiratory disease with multiple pathogenic factors and high morbidity and mortality. Serum levels of nuclear factor-κB (NF-κB), hypoxia-inducible factor-1 alpha (HIF-1α), and surfactant protein D (SPD) were investigated in OSAHS patients, to determine their clinical significance and correlation with the pathog...

The present study investigated the performance of a self-made nanofiltration (NF) membrane for the removal of antibiotics from wastewater under changing operating conditions such as pH, initial feed concentration, operating pressure, and temperature. Amoxicillin (AMX) was used as one of the commonly prescribed antibiotics. A self-made NF membrane containing Polyethersulfone (PES), and Polyvinyl...

We recently provided evidence that anti-inflammatory macrophage activation, i.e., the inhibition of constitutive and signal-induced NF-kappaB activity by the pulmonary collectin surfactant protein (SP)-A, critically involves a promoted stabilization of IkappaB-alpha, the predominant inhibitor of NF-kappaB, via posttranscriptional mechanisms comprising the activation of atypical (a)PKCzeta. SP-A...