Laboratory of Immunoregulation and Mucosal Immunology, Department of Molecular Biomedical Research, VIB, Ghent, Belgium.
Nat Med. 2012 May 4;18(5):684-92. doi: 10.1038/nm.2737.
Asthma is a T lymphocyte-controlled disease of the airway wall caused by inflammation, overproduction of mucus and airway wall remodeling leading to bronchial hyperreactivity and airway obstruction. The airway epithelium is considered an essential controller of inflammatory, immune and regenerative responses to allergens, viruses and environmental pollutants that contribute to asthma pathogenesis. Epithelial cells express pattern recognition receptors that detect environmental stimuli and secrete endogenous danger signals, thereby activating dendritic cells and bridging innate and adaptive immunity. Improved understanding of the epithelium's function in maintaining the integrity of the airways and its dysfunction in asthma has provided important mechanistic insight into how asthma is initiated and perpetuated and could provide a framework by which to select new therapeutic strategies that prevent exacerbations and alter the natural course of the disease.
哮喘是一种由 T 淋巴细胞控制的气道壁疾病，由炎症、黏液过度产生和气道壁重塑导致支气管高反应性和气道阻塞引起。气道上皮被认为是对过敏原、病毒和环境污染物的炎症、免疫和再生反应的重要控制器，这些因素导致了哮喘的发病机制。上皮细胞表达模式识别受体，可检测环境刺激物并分泌内源性危险信号，从而激活树突状细胞并连接先天免疫和适应性免疫。对上皮细胞在维持气道完整性方面的功能及其在哮喘中的功能障碍的更好理解，为哮喘的起始和持续提供了重要的机制见解，并为选择预防恶化和改变疾病自然进程的新治疗策略提供了框架。
