Chest
Alterations in Immunoregulatory T-Cell Subsets in Cigarette Smokers: A Phenotypic Analysis of Bronchoalveolar and Blood Lymphocytes
Section snippets
Population under Study
Our population under study consisted of 11 normal nonsmokers (five men and six women; mean age, 37±15 years) and 12 asymptomatic cigarette smokers (nine men and three women; mean age, 34±16 years). No subject had serious illness or acute viral syndrome in the preceding three months. The smokers had a mean smoking history of 14±9 pack-years. All subjects had normal results of pulmonary function tests, except one smoker, who had mild central airway obstruction. There was no difference in average
General Characteristics of Bronchoalveolar Lavage Fluid and Cells
The total number of cells recovered was significantly increased in smokers compared with that in nonsmokers, as is well known from prior studies (Table 1). This was due to an increase in the proportion and absolute number of macrophages recovered from the lungs of smokers. In absolute numbers, smokers had 516±459 and nonsmokers had 126±62×l03 macrophages per milliliter of bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (p<0.05).
The absolute numbers of lymphocytes in the bronchoalveolar lavage fluid were not
DISCUSSION
Immunologic alterations due to cigarette smoking include an increase in leukocyte counts in the peripheral blood,8, 16, 18 a decrease in levels of circulating immunoglobulins,14, 15 and the formation of serum precipitins against tobacco antigens.9, 10 Studies of the peripheral blood lymphocyte responsiveness to mitogens are conflicting, indicating enhancement,28 no effect,12, 13 or suppression17 in cigarette smokers.
A reversible decrease in the ratio of OKT4+ to OKT8+ lymphocytes in the
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Supported in part by grant Co 118/2-1 from the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft.
Manuscript received October 28; revision accepted January 10.