Alveolar macrophages from systemic sclerosis patients: evidence for IL-4-mediated phenotype changes

TL;DR: A review of the literature on functions of IL-4 in rheumatic diseases is presented and it is reported that IL‐4 takes part in the regulation of T cell activation, differentiation, proliferation, and survival of different T cell types.

TL;DR: In this article, the authors evaluated the contribution of interleukin-8 (IL-8) to the pathogenesis of idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) by studying bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) in eight patients with IPF in the chronically progressive phase, five patients with pneumonia in the subacutely progressive phase and eight patients suffering from sarcoidosis (SAR), and eight control (CTL) subjects.

TL;DR: The challenge in the next few years is to better dissect the fine mechanisms underlying the pathological role of myeloid cells in these diseases in order to define specific cell subsets or proteins that can be potential targets for drug development.

TL;DR: In this paper, the role of autoimmunity in generating the clinical and pathologic phenotype in systemic sclerosis remains uncertain, and technologies are emerging to accurately measure the autoantigen-specific T-cell response in SSc patients.

TL;DR: This study produced predicted values for forced vital capacity and forced expiratory volume in one second that were almost identical to those predicted by Morris and associates when the data from their study were modified to be compatible with the back extrapolation technique recommended by the ATS.

TL;DR: Criteria for the early diagnosis and classification of systemic sclerosis that reflect the vascular and serological advances of the last 2 decades are proposed.