Openshaw Peter J M, Yamaguchi Yuko, Tregoning John S
Department of Respiratory Medicine, Imperial College London, London, UK.
J Allergy Clin Immunol. 2004 Dec;114(6):1275-7. doi: 10.1016/j.jaci.2004.08.024.
Asthma is an immune-mediated inflammatory condition characterized by increased responsiveness to bronchoconstrictive stimuli. Viruses have been shown to play an important role in asthma, with viral infection being present during about 85% of exacerbations. However, the role they play in the onset of asthma is more controversial. Some respiratory viral infections might be protective, but there is a strong association between respiratory syncytial virus-induced bronchiolitis in infancy and recurrent wheeze up to 12 years of age. Both the respiratory tract and the immune system undergo rapid maturation during the first year of life, and it seems that postnatal development is affected by and affects responses to viral infections. Understanding postnatal developmental changes in the immune system might help to explain the origins and pathogenesis of asthma and thus the effectiveness or ineffectiveness of specific asthma therapies.
哮喘是一种免疫介导的炎症性疾病，其特征是对支气管收缩刺激的反应性增加。病毒已被证明在哮喘中起重要作用，约85%的哮喘发作期间存在病毒感染。然而，它们在哮喘发病中所起的作用更具争议性。一些呼吸道病毒感染可能具有保护作用，但婴儿期呼吸道合胞病毒引起的细支气管炎与12岁前反复喘息之间存在密切关联。呼吸道和免疫系统在生命的第一年都会经历快速成熟，似乎出生后的发育既受病毒感染反应的影响，也会影响对病毒感染的反应。了解免疫系统出生后的发育变化可能有助于解释哮喘的起源和发病机制，进而解释特定哮喘疗法的有效性或无效性。
