ArticleAmerican journal of physiology. Lung cellular and molecular physiology2026
Tracheal aspirates of mechanically ventilated preterm infants possess cytopathic tau variants: a prospective exploratory study.
Article in American journal of physiology. Lung cellular and molecular physiology, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
0 citing papers in PubMed.
No citing paper in PubMed yet.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
10 authors.
Funding
Abstract
Tau protein, a microtubule-associated protein expressed in lung capillary endothelium, is detectable early in lung development and has been implicated in systemic dysfunction during adult respiratory infections. Its role in neonatal lung injury, however, remains undefined. In this study, we analyzed tracheal aspirates from 67 mechanically ventilated infants (51 preterm and 16 term) and compared them with 20 cord blood samples and five healthy adult plasma samples. Preterm infants were further stratified by histological chorioamnionitis status and severity of bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD) at 36-wk postmenstrual age (Jensen's 2019 criteria). Total tau concentrations were measured using a Meso Scale Discovery assay, and neuronal tau seeding assays assessed the presence of cytopathic tau variants. Tau was detected in all samples, with significantly higher concentrations in neonatal tracheal aspirates and cord blood compared with adult plasma. In both cord blood and tracheal aspirates, preterm infants exhibited elevated total tau levels relative to term infants. The tau protein present in preterm tracheal aspirates induced neuronal tau aggregation across gestational ages. Although total tau concentrations did not differ, the cytopathic activity of tracheal aspirates was increased in infants with chorioamnionitis. Neither total tau nor seeding activity correlated with BPD severity. Our study findings demonstrate that tau is abundant in the airways of mechanically ventilated preterm infants and exhibits cytopathic properties, suggesting a potential role in both neonatal lung injury and development. Further studies are needed to clarify the mechanistic contribution of tau to lung pathology in this highly vulnerable population.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.