Addition of NAC to pneumococcal-stimulated AMs and PBMCs was generally associated with diminished cytokine production, with the exception ofIL-1β that was elevated in AM culture supernatants from subjects with AUDs.
Immunogenic HMGB1/IL-1β complexes represent a novel target for immune modulatory therapy in alcohol use disorders, and should be investigated in other psychiatric diseases that involve a neuroimmune component.
XOR protein in BAL cells from AUD subjects was increased in parallel with COX-2 expression, and furthermore, mRNA expression of NLRP3 inflammasome components was sustained in LPS-stimulated BAL cells from AUD subjects in conjunction with increased IL-1β.
Collectively, our work suggests that AUDs and cigarette smoking each contribute to a proinflammatory pulmonary milieu in human subjects through independent effects on BAL RANTES and IL-1β.