Hypersegmented airway neutrophils and its association with reduced lung function in adults with obstructive airway disease: an exploratory study

OBJECTIVES: The significance of neutrophilic inflammation in obstructive airway disease remains controversial. Recent studies have demonstrated presence of an active neutrophil population in systemic circulation, featuring hypersegmented morphology, with high oxidative burst and functional plasticity in inflammatory conditions. The aim of this study was to characterise neutrophil subsets in bronchial lavage (BL) of obstructive airway disease participants (asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and bronchiectasis) and healthy controls on the basis of nuclear morphology and to assess the association between neutrophil subsets and the clinical parameters of the obstructive airway disease participants. DESIGN: A cross-sectional exploratory study. SETTING: John Hunter Hospital and Hunter Medical Research Institute, Australia. PARTICIPANTS: Seventy-eight adults with obstructive airway disease comprised those with stable asthma (n=39), COPD (n=20) and bronchiectasis (n=19) and 20 healthy controls. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Cytospins were prepared and neutrophil subsets were classified based on nuclear morphology into hypersegmented (>4 lobes), normal (2–4 lobes) and banded (1 lobe) neutrophils and enumerated. RESULTS: Neutrophils from each subset were identified in all participants. Numbers of hypersegmented neutrophils were elevated in participants with airway disease compared with healthy controls (p<0.001). Both the number and the proportion of hypersegmented neutrophils were highest in COPD participants (median (Q1–Q3) of 1073.6 (258.8–2742) × 10(2)/mL and 24.5 (14.0–46.5)%, respectively). An increased proportion of hypersegmented neutrophils in airway disease participants was significantly associated with lower forced expiratory volume in 1 s/forced vital capacity per cent (Spearman’s r=−0.322, p=0.004). CONCLUSION: Neutrophil heterogeneity is common in BL and is associated with more severe airflow obstruction in adults with airway disease. Further work is required to elucidate the functional consequences of hypersegmented neutrophils in the pathogenesis of disease.