[Truncated abstract] Urinary desmosines have been proposed as a biomarker for inflammatory lung damage. Desmosine, a breakdown product of elastin, is an effective marker of the degradation of elastin and has been studied in many disease scenarios where there is acute and chronic lung inflammation. Lung matrix degradation has been proven in vitro and in vivo with many experiments showing that the excess proteases degrades lung matrix. The secretion of proteases by neutrophils is an innate response of the body to the invasion by micro organisms and when secreted in excess, the protective anti-protease mechanism is swamped. Chronic inflammation and persistent infection eventually leads to bronchiectasis and respiratory failure. Urinary desmosine has been shown to be elevated in respiratory conditions with acute and chronic inflammation . . . Urinary desmosine levels in a large cohort of healthy children have been established using this method and predictive Z-score formulae have been developed to use in children with lung disease. Exploration of these scores in children with CF have shown that the levels of urinary desmosine appear to be sensitive to the clinical setting, where high urinary desmosine levels were present during exacerbation and significantly reduced when treated for infection with antibiotic therapy and physiotherapy. The study of young children under the age of seven was undertaken to determine if the urinary desmosine levels could indicate when lung damage was occurring and to determine what mechanisms might be involved. Since there appeared to be no apparent relationship between elevated desmosines and proteases in the lung in young children with CF, further studies are required to define the mechanisms behind increased elastin metabolism in those children.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Alabama at Birmingham, 2007. / Title from first page of PDF file (viewed Feb. 6, 2008). Includes bibliographical references.

Diss. (sammanfattning) Stockholm : Karol. inst., 2004. / Härtill 4 uppsatser.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Cornell University, May, 1997. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 170-181).

Diss. (sammanfattning) Göteborg : Göteborgs universitet, 2009. / Härtill 5 uppsatser.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Missouri-Columbia, 1997. / Typescript. Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 131-132). Also available on the Internet.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Missouri--Columbia, 1998. / "December 1998" Typescript. Vita. Includes bibliographical references (l. 140-148). Also available on the Internet.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Missouri-Columbia, 1997. / Typescript. Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves 131-132). Also available on the Internet.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--West Virginia University, 1999. / Title from document title page. Document formatted into pages; contains xi, 131 p. : ill. Vita. Includes abstract. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Missouri-Columbia, 2007. / The entire dissertation/thesis text is included in the research.pdf file; the official abstract appears in the short.pdf file (which also appears in the research.pdf); a non-technical general description, or public abstract, appears in the public.pdf file. Vita. "December 2007" Includes bibliographical references.