Department of Molecular Pharmacology, University of Groningen, Groningen, the Netherlands.
Mol Pharmacol. 2011 Dec;80(6):955-8. doi: 10.1124/mol.111.075481. Epub 2011 Sep 13.
For a long time it was believed that β(2)-adrenergic receptor agonists used in the treatment of obstructive airway diseases worked primarily on airway smooth muscle cells, causing relaxation, whereas glucocorticoids primarily improved airway function via their anti-inflammatory action, indicating that their clinical synergism occurred at the organism rather than the cellular level. However, it is now becoming clear that both drug classes can affect airway function at multiple levels, including an integrated effect on several cell types. This article summarizes data on the molecular interaction between the two receptor systems, particularly with relevance to phenomena of β(2)-adrenergic receptor desensitization and glucocorticoid insensitivity in the airways. These molecular interactions may contribute to the observed clinical synergism between both drug classes in the treatment of obstructive airway diseases.
长期以来，人们一直认为用于治疗阻塞性气道疾病的β（2）-肾上腺素能受体激动剂主要作用于气道平滑肌细胞，导致其松弛，而糖皮质激素主要通过抗炎作用改善气道功能，这表明它们的临床协同作用发生在机体水平而非细胞水平。然而，现在越来越清楚的是，这两类药物都可以在多个水平上影响气道功能，包括对几种细胞类型的综合影响。本文总结了这两个受体系统之间分子相互作用的数据，特别是与气道中β（2）-肾上腺素能受体脱敏和糖皮质激素不敏感现象相关的数据。这些分子相互作用可能有助于观察到这两类药物在治疗阻塞性气道疾病中的临床协同作用。
