Decreased phosphatidylcholine in the lung fluid of patients with sarcoidosis.

Surfactant decreases the immune response of lymphocytes. Pulmonary sarcoidosis is a disease characterized by an increased number and activity of lymphocytes in the lung. We measured the lipids and lymphocytes retrieved from the lung by bronchoalveolar lavage. Thirteen patients with active pulmonary sarcoidosis had a significantly higher percentage of lymphocytes (18 +/- 21%, mean +/- standard error of the mean) than 10 control subjects (4 +/- 1.9%, p less than 0.01). Using an external marker, we found the absolute amount of disaturated phosphatidylcholine to be higher in the control group (174 +/- 17.4 micrograms/ml lung fluid) than in the sarcoid group (91 +/- 1.9 micrograms/ml of lung fluid, p less than 0.002).