Exhaled breath condensate identifies metabolic dysregulation in patients with radiation-induced lung injury
Josly Pierre-Louis Odoom, M.A.T. Freeberg, Sarah Camus, Robin Toft, Barbara Szomju, Rose Marie Sanchez Rosado, Peter Jackson, Jeremy C. Allegood, Scott Silvey, Jinze Liu, L. Ashley Cowart, Elisabeth Weiss, Thomas H. Thatcher, Patricia J. Sime
Abstract
We report that exhaled breath condensate (EBC) identifies cellular metabolic dysregulation in patients with radiation-induced lung injury. In this pilot study, untargeted metabolomics revealed a striking metabolic signature in EBC from patients with radiation-induced lung fibrosis compared to patients with lung cancer, at-risk smokers, and healthy volunteers. Patients with radiation-induced fibrosis exhibit specific changes in tricarboxylic acid (TCA) cycle energy metabolism that may be required to support the increased energy demands of fibroproliferation.