EDITORIAL

Abstract

We are delighted to welcome five new members to our team of Associate Editors. Dr David Armstrong from Melbourne, Australia is an expert in cystic fibrosis, paediatric lung diseases and sleep. Dr Andreas Diacon works in Cape Town, South Africa and his interests are tuberculosis, pleural disease and bronchoscopy. Professor Martin Kolb is a chest physician specializing in pulmonary fibrosis research and works at McMaster University in Hamilton (Ontario), Canada. Professor Helen Reddel from Sydney, Australia conducts research focused on a better understanding of the mechanisms and outcomes of asthma treatment. Professor Jeff Swigris from Denver (Colorado), USA specializes in pulmonary fibrosis and lung disease, with a particular interest in connective tissue disease-related interstitial lung disease. We look forward to their contribution to the Journal. We are also very pleased to announce that Professor Michael Abramson has recently joined the Journal as Honorary Epidemiologist-Statistician. Professor Abramson works at Monash University in Melbourne, Australia and has specialized in the clinical epidemiology of asthma and COPD, including genetic and environmental risk factors such as air pollution and occupation, and the role of spirometry in managing these conditions. Professor Abramson's role will be to assist Associate Editors in assessing the validity of specific study designs and/or the statistical methods used. We look forward to his contribution to the Journal which will ensure a higher standard for manuscripts accepted for publication in Respirology. This issue marks the second of our review articles inspired by lectures presented by the presidents of five major respiratory societies (APSR, ERS, ACCP, ALAT and ATS) at the last APSR conference in Kyoto, Japan. This second review entitled ‘Nosocomial Acinetobacter Pneumonia’ has been written by Professor Carlos Luna, President of the ALAT, and his colleague Dr Patricia Aruj (pp. 787–791). In their review, Professor Luna and Dr Aruj discuss the microbiology and epidemiology of Acinetobacter, the risk factors involved with Acinetobacter infections and treatment options. I am sure this review will be of great interest to our readers. A highlight of this issue is the article by Dr Ning and Professor Wang entitled ‘Role of Rel A and IkappaB of nuclear factor κB in the release of interleukin-8 by cyclic mechanical strain in human alveolar type II epithelial cells A549’ (pp. 792–798). These authors report that cyclic mechanical stretch, such as mechanical ventilation, can activate Rel A translocation and IkBα degradation, inducing the secretion of pro-inflammatory cytokines such as IL-8, which may ultimately lead to ventilator-associated lung injury. This study provides insights into the potential for new preventative therapies for ARDS and ventilator-associated lung injury. The article by Dr Trejo and colleagues ‘Beneficial effects of hydrocortisone and papaverine on a model of pulmonary embolism induced by autologous blood-clots in isolated and perfused rabbit lungs’ (pp. 799–806) investigates the effect of an anti-inflammatory drug (hydrocortisone) and a vasodilator (papaverine) on a model of pulmonary embolism induced by autologous blood-clots in isolated and perfused rabbit lungs, and suggests that vasodilatation and anti-inflammatory therapies may be useful in treating pulmonary embolism. If reproducible in humans this could be an important new direction for treating pulmonary embolism. Another highlight in this issue is the article by Dr Aoki-Nagase and colleagues entitled ‘Calcitonin gene-related peptide mediates acid-induced lung injury in mice’ (pp. 807–813). These authors observed attenuated acid-induced injury, oedema and respiratory failure in mice with disrupted calcitonin gene-related peptide genes, suggesting a role for these peptides in the pathogenesis of acute lung injury caused by acid aspiration. In the article entitled ‘Surfactant degradation activity in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid from guinea pigs challenged with antigen’ (pp. 828–833), Dr Abo and colleagues confirmed the degradation of surfactant in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid from guinea pigs challenged with inhaled antigen. They also showed that this degradation can be partially suppressed by a secretory phospholipase A2 inhibitor, suggesting potential new treatment options for bronchial asthma. The case–control study by Professor Fei Xu and colleagues ‘Better understanding the influence of cigarette smoking and indoor air pollution on COPD: A case–control study in mainland China’ (pp. 891–897) investigates to what extent cigarette smoking and exposure to indoor air pollution is associated with COPD in a mainland Chinese population. Their findings support the need for public health initiatives that discourage cigarette smoking, especially among women. Finally, a technical report by Dr Schmid and colleagues ‘Design and validation of interpretative strategy for cardiopulmonary exercise tests’ (pp. 916–923) describes the development of a strategy for the interpretation of cardiopulmonary exercise tests with a diagnostic precision that approaches the consensus of two experts in the field. This strategy can improve the consistency of interpretation of cardiopulmonary exercise tests in a pulmonary centre with physicians who have varying degrees of expertise. I hope you enjoy this issue of Respirology.