title: Environmental Exposure and Genetic Predisposition as Risk Factors for Asthma in China.
abstract: Asthma is the most common chronic pulmonary disease worldwide and places a considerable economic burden on society. China is the world's largest developing country and has the largest population. China has undergone dramatic changes in the past few decades. The traditional lifestyle and living environment have changed in ways that directly affect the prevalence of asthma. The prevalence of asthma is lower in Chinese children and adults than in developed countries, but the prevalence has been on the rise during the past 30 years. The prevalence significantly varies among different parts of China. Polymorphisms of multiple genes, outdoor air pollution caused by PM2.5, PM10, SO₂, NO₂, environmental tobacco smoke, and coal, indoor pollution, and inhaled allergens, such as house dust mites, pollen, and cockroach particles, are risk factors for asthma.
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Respiratory Disease, The First Affiliated Hospital, Guangzhou Medical University, Guangzhou, China.|Guangdong Pharmaceutical University, Guangzhou, China.
authors.forename: Yan
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.affiliation: Department of Pediatrics, Prince of Wales Hospital, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, China.
authors.forename: Gary W K
authors.initials: GW
authors.lastname: Wong
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Respiratory Disease, The First Affiliated Hospital, Guangzhou Medical University, Guangzhou, China. lijing@gird.cn.
authors.forename: Jing
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Li
keywords: Asthma; air pollution; allergen; genetic polymorphism