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Previous Volume 356:2001-2002 May 10, 2007 Number 19 Next

	Since this article has no abstract, we have provided an extract of the first 100 words of the full text and any section headings.

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To the Editor: Uchida et al. (Feb. 8 issue)¹ report that in patients with pulmonary alveolar proteinosis, neutrophil functions are impaired because of autoantibodies against granulocyte–macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF). Although this may be true, neutralizing GM-CSF autoantibodies are found at high levels in a small proportion (<5%) of healthy persons. The Gammagard immune globulin used as a "negative" control by Uchida et al. contains these autoantibodies.^2,3 Pulmonary alveolar proteinosis has been described in patients without autoantibodies against GM-CSF,⁴ and pathological specimens from patients with this condition may respond to preparations of immunoglobulin containing these autoantibodies.⁵ When primed with 10 ng . . . [Full Text of this Article]

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• Uchida, K., Nakata, K., Suzuki, T., Luisetti, M., Watanabe, M., Koch, D. E., Stevens, C. A., Beck, D. C., Denson, L. A., Carey, B. C., Keicho, N., Krischer, J. P., Yamada, Y., Trapnell, B. C. (2009). Granulocyte/macrophage-colony-stimulating factor autoantibodies and myeloid cell immune functions in healthy subjects. Blood 113: 2547-2556 [Abstract] [Full Text]