HOME HELP FEEDBACK SUBSCRIPTIONS ARCHIVE SEARCH TABLE OF CONTENTS REGISTER		Author Keyword(s) Vol Page [Advanced]

This Article Full Text Full Text (PDF) Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Citation Map Services Email this link to a friend Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in PubMed Add article to my folders Download to citation manager Request Permissions Citing Articles Citing Articles via HighWire Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Ojoo, J C Articles by Redington, A E Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Ojoo, J C Articles by Redington, A E

Exhaled breath condensate pH and exhaled nitric oxide in allergic asthma and in cystic fibrosis

Division of Academic Medicine, Postgraduate Medical Institute, University of Hull, Hull, UK

Correspondence to:
Correspondence to:
Dr A E Redington
Respiratory Medicine, Hammersmith Hospital, Du Cane Road, London W12 0HS; a.e.redington{at}hhnt.org

Background: It has been proposed that the pH of airway lining fluid may regulate the fractional exhaled concentration of nitric oxide (FE_NO) in respiratory disease.

Methods: FE_NO, exhaled breath condensate (EBC) pH, and EBC concentrations of nitrite plus nitrate (NO₂/NO₃) were compared in 12 subjects with stable asthma, 18 with stable cystic fibrosis (CF), and 15 healthy control subjects. Eight of the CF patients were studied on a separate occasion at the start of a pulmonary exacerbation.

Results: FE_NO was significantly greater in asthmatic subjects than in control subjects (mean 35 v 9 ppb, p<0.001). EBC pH, however, was similar in the asthmatic and control groups (median 5.82 v 6.08, p = 0.23). Levels of NO₂/NO₃ were on average higher in EBC samples from asthmatic subjects, but the difference was not significant. In patients with stable CF both the FE_NO (mean 4 ppb, p<0.001) and EBC pH (median 5.77, p = 0.003) were lower than in the control group. Levels of EBC NO₂/NO₃ (median 29.9 µM; p = 0.002) in patients with stable CF, in contrast, were significantly higher than in control subjects. During CF exacerbations, EBC pH was further reduced (median 5.30, p = 0.017) but FE_NO and NO₂/NO₃ were unchanged.

Conclusions: These findings demonstrate a dissociation between EBC pH and FE_NO in inflammatory airways disease.

Abbreviations: CF, cystic fibrosis; EBC, exhaled breath condensate; FE_NO, fractional exhaled concentration of nitric oxide; FEV₁, forced expiratory volume in 1 second; FVC, forced vital capacity; NO, nitric oxide; PD₂₀, provocative dose of methacholine required to produce a 20% fall in FEV₁

Keywords: asthma; cystic fibrosis; exhaled breath condensate; nitric oxide

This article has been cited by other articles:

				R. Do, K. H. Bartlett, H. Dimich-Ward, W. Chu, and S. M. Kennedy Biomarkers of Airway Acidity and Oxidative Stress in Exhaled Breath Condensate from Grain Workers Am. J. Respir. Crit. Care Med., November 15, 2008; 178(10): 1048 - 1054. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				Z. L. Borrill, K. Roy, and D. Singh Exhaled breath condensate biomarkers in COPD Eur. Respir. J., August 1, 2008; 32(2): 472 - 486. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				M. A. Patrauchan, S. A. Sarkisova, and M. J. Franklin Strain-specific proteome responses of Pseudomonas aeruginosa to biofilm-associated growth and to calcium Microbiology, November 1, 2007; 153(11): 3838 - 3851. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				S. Dodig, I. Cepelak, D. Plavec, Z. Vlasic, B. Nogalo, and M. Turkalj The effect of gas standardisation on exhaled breath condensate pH and PCO2 Eur. Respir. J., July 1, 2007; 30(1): 185 - 187. [Full Text] [PDF]

				A. Schmid, Z. Sutto, M.-C. Nlend, G. Horvath, N. Schmid, J. Buck, L. R. Levin, G. E. Conner, N. Fregien, and M. Salathe Soluble Adenylyl Cyclase Is Localized to Cilia and Contributes to Ciliary Beat Frequency Regulation via Production of cAMP J. Gen. Physiol., July 1, 2007; 130(1): 99 - 109. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				X. Su, Q. Li, K. Shrestha, E. Cormet-Boyaka, L. Chen, P. R. Smith, E. J. Sorscher, D. J. Benos, S. Matalon, and H.-L. Ji Interregulation of Proton-gated Na+ Channel 3 and Cystic Fibrosis Transmembrane Conductance Regulator J. Biol. Chem., December 1, 2006; 281(48): 36960 - 36968. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				N. C. Nicolaou, L. A. Lowe, C. S. Murray, A. Woodcock, A. Simpson, and A. Custovic Exhaled Breath Condensate pH and Childhood Asthma: Unselected Birth Cohort Study Am. J. Respir. Crit. Care Med., August 1, 2006; 174(3): 254 - 259. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				Z. L. Borrill, J. A. Smith, J. Naylor, A. A. Woodcock, and D. Singh The effect of gas standardisation on exhaled breath condensate pH. Eur. Respir. J., July 1, 2006; 28(1): 251 - 252. [Full Text] [PDF]

				ATS Workshop Proceedings: Exhaled Nitric Oxide and Nitric Oxide Oxidative Metabolism in Exhaled Breath Condensate: Executive Summary. Am. J. Respir. Crit. Care Med., April 1, 2006; 173(7): 811 - 813. [Full Text] [PDF]

				R. M. Effros, R. Casaburi, J. Su, M. Dunning, J. Torday, J. Biller, and R. Shaker The Effects of Volatile Salivary Acids and Bases on Exhaled Breath Condensate pH Am. J. Respir. Crit. Care Med., February 15, 2006; 173(4): 386 - 392. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				P. J. Franklin, G. L. Hall, A. Moeller, F. Horak, S. Brennan, and S. M. Stick Exhaled nitric oxide is not reduced in infants with cystic fibrosis Eur. Respir. J., February 1, 2006; 27(2): 350 - 354. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				A. O. Paget-Brown, L. Ngamtrakulpanit, A. Smith, D. Bunyan, S. Hom, A. Nguyen, and J. F. Hunt Normative Data for pH of Exhaled Breath Condensate. Chest, February 1, 2006; 129(2): 426 - 430. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				ATS Workshop Proceedings: Exhaled Nitric Oxide and Nitric Oxide Oxidative Metabolism in Exhaled Breath Condensate. Proceedings of the ATS, January 1, 2006; 3(2): 131 - 145. [Full Text] [PDF]

				I. Horvath, J. Hunt, P. J. Barnes, and On behalf of the ATS/ERS Task Force on Exhaled Bre Exhaled breath condensate: methodological recommendations and unresolved questions Eur. Respir. J., September 1, 2005; 26(3): 523 - 548. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				G. MacGregor, S. Ellis, J. Andrews, M. Imrie, A. Innes, A. P. Greening, and S. Cunningham Breath condensate ammonium is lower in children with chronic asthma Eur. Respir. J., August 1, 2005; 26(2): 271 - 276. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

				D W Reid, J C Ojoo, S A Mulrennan, J A Kastelik, A H Morice, and A E Redington Bacterial denitrification, nitric oxide and airway pH in CF Thorax, July 1, 2005; 60(7): 614 - 614. [Full Text] [PDF]

				A Morice, C F Everett, S A Mulrennan, K F Chung, and A Niimi Exhaled breath condensate in chronic cough * Authors' reply Thorax, March 1, 2005; 60(3): 259 - 259. [Full Text] [PDF]

				A Morice EBC pH and chronic cough Thorax, March 1, 2005; 60(3): 257 - 257. [Full Text] [PDF]

				J F Hunt Informative complexity of exhaled nitrogen oxide chemistry Thorax, January 1, 2005; 60(1): 2 - 3. [Full Text] [PDF]

eLetters: