[Immunological changes in dust-induced lung diseases].

Area of Science:

• Occupational Medicine
• Immunology
• Pulmonology

Background:

• Dust-induced lung diseases, including pneumoconioses and mechanical bronchitis, pose significant health risks.
• Clinical and functional assessments alone are insufficient to predict disease trajectory or infectious complications.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the relationship between humoral immunity, nonspecific resistance, and the progression of dust-induced lung diseases.
• To identify immunological markers associated with predisposition to occupational lung diseases and infectious complications.

Main Methods:

• Examined 145 patients with dust-induced lung diseases and 57 controls.
• Assessed clinical and functional evidence, humoral immunity factors (immunoglobulins, fibronectin, complement), and nonspecific resistance markers (lysozyme).

Main Results:

• Clinical and functional data did not predict disease course or infectious complications like silicotuberculosis or mechanical bronchitis.
• Impaired humoral immunity and nonspecific resistance varied by disease type and predisposed to infections.
• Increased plasma fibronectin and serum IgA, with decreased serum mucin antigen, were linked to occupational lung disease predisposition.
• Chronic mechanical bronchitis showed reduced lysozyme and complement activity, with elevated IgM and IgG.
• Fibronectin, total IgE, and mucin antigen 3EG5 were implicated in dust-induced lung disease inflammation.

Conclusions:

• Immune factor assessment in workers exposed to industrial aerosols and patients with dust-induced lung diseases is crucial.
• Identifying these factors aids in precise assessment of disease progression and infectious complication risk.