Anti-IL13RA1 monoclonal antibody, clone HN2F8

The 106th edition of the Annual Meeting of the United States and Canadian Academy of Pathology (USCAP) was held in San Antonio, Texas, and attracted over 5,000 participants from around the world. The conference consisted of 273 oral presentations and 1,621 posters, and also included specialty conferences, courses, society meetings, exhibitors and interactive microscopy sessions. The event included presentations on the latest findings in pathology, including new biomarkers of diagnosis and/or prognosis, as well as new data to further understand the biological processes in disease. This report is a brief overview of some of the most relevant presentations.

Targeted expression of interleukin (IL)-13 in the adult murine lung has been shown to cause emphysema. We hypothesized that variants in the 103, IL13RA1, and IL4RA genes would be associated with an accelerated rate of decline of lung function among smokers. We determined the allele frequencies of five polymorphisms in the IL13, IL13RA1, and IL4RA genes in 588 continuing smokers chosen from the NHLBI Lung Health Study for having the fastest (n = 282) and slowest (n = 306) 5-yr rate of decline of lung function (mean change in FEV1 %predicted/yr = -4.1 and +1.1, respectively). The IL4RA 551RR genotype was associated with rapid decline of lung function (odds ratio, 2.24; P = 0.043). However, none of the other four polymorphisms was associated with rate of decline in lung function. The association of 551RR with rapid decline of lung function became more significant in subjects who also had. either the IL13 130RR or -1112TT genotypes. However, because multiple comparisons were made and only a few individuals had the 551RR genotype, these associations may represent type 1 error. Haplotypes consisting of alleles from the IL13 polymorphisms or from the IL4RA polymorphisms were not associated with rate of decline in lung function in smokers.