Airway irritability--a burning issue?
Systems biology is being increasingly used to probe the underlying pathophysiology of asthma, although serious challenges remain to decipher the physiologic significance of the information revealed in these studies relating to gene expression and regulatory gene networks often used to understand gene-gene interactions. One phenotypic change characteristic of asthma is increased airway irritability, or bronchial hyperresponsiveness (BHR) which is still poorly understood. While the precise mechanism(s) remain(s) to be identified, a number of hypotheses have been posited to account for this phenomenon, including airways inflammation, alteration in airway smooth muscle function, and airway remodeling. However, the role of sensory nerves in this phenomenon has received scant attention yet offers a potentially new target for the development of novel drugs.
Spina
Domenico
D
The Sackler Institute of Pulmonary Pharmacology, Pharmaceutical Science Division, 5th Floor Hodgkin Building, Kings College London, London SE1 1UL, United Kingdom. domenico.spina@kcl.ac.uk
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Clive
C
D000818:Animals; D018927:Anti-Asthmatic Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use; D001249:Asthma / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000276:immunology / Q000473:pathology*; D016535:Bronchial Hyperreactivity / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000276:immunology* / Q000473:pathology*; D006801:Humans; D018836:Inflammation Mediators / Q000502:physiology; D008168:Lung / Q000276:immunology / Q000473:pathology
D018927:Anti-Asthmatic Agents; D018836:Inflammation Mediators