Biochemical and morphometric analyses in hypoplastic lungs.

We report the results of biochemical and morphometric studies on lungs of infants with bilateral lung hypoplasia either with or without oligohydramnios (OH or NOH) in comparison with findings in normally grown lungs. The OH and NOH lungs were equally hypoplastic in terms of DNA content but OH lungs had a significantly lower disaturated phosphatidylcholine (DSPC) concentration than NOH or normal lungs, apart from a subgroup with gastrointestinal or airway obstruction. Hydroxyproline concentration in OH lungs was higher than that in NOH or normal lungs. Desmosine concentrations did not differ significantly between groups despite the obvious lack of elastin in the septal crests of the OH group on histology. Morphometry revealed low lung volume, low radial alveolar counts, low alveolar numbers, and low alveolar surface area in both OH and NOH groups. Alveoli and alveolar ducts constituted a higher proportion of lung volume in NOH than in OH lungs. The similarity of most morphometric indices in the two groups implies that maturation does not depend on quantitative elaboration of airways and alveoli. The finding of impaired epithelial maturation despite the high hydroxyproline concentration in the OH lungs suggests an abnormality in epithelial-mesenchymal interaction that is not present in the equally small lungs of the NOH group.