Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
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Query: UMLS:C0037116 (silicosis)
 1,822 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

To determine whether the clinical, immunological and serological features of patients with silica-associated systemic sclerosis are different from patients with the 'idiopathic' form of systemic sclerosis (SS) we studied 22 underground coal miners who were exposed to silica dust (SD), 30 mine workers who later developed silicosis (S) and 17 mine workers exposed to silica dust who subsequently developed a systemic sclerosis-like disease (SA-SS). The patients with SA-SS had features clinically indistinguishable from individual patients with SS. They all had Raynaud's phenomenon, 14 had cutaneous sclerosis identical to that seen in acrosclerosis and three had a generalized cutaneous sclerosis. Sixteen patients had bibasilar pulmonary fibrosis, 10 had necrosis of the fingertip pulps, nine had oesophageal involvement and only one patient had renal involvement. Antinuclear antibodies and circulating immune complexes were detected in three and eight patients with SD, 14 and five patients with S and in 16 and nine patients with SA-SS, respectively. Anti-Scl-70 antibody was detected in eight of the 17 patients with SA-SS. Evidence for in vivo endothelial cell damage, as determined by elevated levels of von Willebrand factor, was found in nine patients with SD, 14 patients with S and in 10 patients with SA-SS. Following incubation of the patient's serum with confluent cultures of human umbilical vein endothelial cells there was only a significant reduction in calcium ionophore-induced release of prostacyclin with the serum from SA-SS patients compared to that with control serum (NC). The mean +/- SEM release of 6-keto-PGF1 alpha (the stable metabolite of prostacyclin expressed as ng/10(4) cells) decreased from 2.90 +/- 0.27 to 2.01 +/- 0.33 (SD), 3.34 +/- 0.42 to 1.76 +/- 0.31 (S), 1.98 +/- 0.12 to 0.64 +/- 0.07 (SA-SS) and 2.28 +/- 0.33 to 1.36 +/- 0.21 (NC) with 1 and 20% serum, respectively. This study demonstrates that immune complex and antinuclear antibody formation and in vivo endothelial cell damage occurs following occupational exposure to silica. The patients who subsequently develop a systemic sclerosis-like disease have clinical, immunological and serological features which are indistinguishable from the idiopathic form of the disease although as a group the SA-SS patients have a higher prevalence of pulmonary involvement and the anti-Scl-70 antibody.
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PMID:Silica-associated systemic sclerosis is clinically, serologically and immunologically indistinguishable from idiopathic systemic sclerosis. 217 91

58 miners affected by VWF were studied by some immunological tests: electrophoresis, quantitantive immunoglobulin determination, latex test. C3c, C3PA and C4, cryoglobulin, ANA and ati-DNA antibody, L.E. cell. Slight hyperimmunoglobulinaemia G was observed in 31% of cases; this abnormality was significantly more frequent in patients also suffering for pulmonary silicosis. Authors indicate pneumoconiosis as an important confounding variable, which importance for epidemiological studies has not yet satisfactorily assessed.
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PMID:[Immunological changes in disease caused by vibrating instruments. Preliminary tests]. 718 41

In 15 patients with systemic sclerosis (SS) and 8 patients suffering from silicosis and/or silica dust exposure-associated scleroderma (SAS), various parameters of endothelial cell and platelet function and of blood coagulation and fibrinolysis were studied. In 9 of the 23 patients the values for the von Willebrand factor antigen were increased, and the same applied to the endothelin levels in 8 of 23 patients. Protein C, protein S, anti-thrombin III and tissue plasminogen activator (before and after 10 min venous occlusion) were normal. The plasminogen activator inhibitor, however, was increased in 5 patients. Increased levels of platelet factor 4 and of beta-thromboglobulin were found in 20 patients, while the ADP- and epinephrine-induced platelet aggregation was reduced in 5 patients. No individual patient was found to have a general disturbance of all parameters. The deviations in the parameters of endothelial cell and platelet function and of blood coagulation and fibrinolysis proved to be rather inconsistent. This suggests different functional stages in dependence on the various influential factors. There was no close correlation either with the severity of Raynaud's phenomenon or with the type of SS. In addition, there were no basic differences between SS and SAS. The disturbances occurred with similar frequency and in similar proportions in both disease groups.
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PMID:[Vascular function parameters in idiopathic and quartz-induced progressive scleroderma]. 827 90