PMID: 8939171Nov 1, 1996Paper

The immunopharmacology of mild asthma

The Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology
Stephen T Holgate

Abstract

If cell numbers, activation state, or mediators, for example, can be correlated with some clinical measure of disease severity, a major effector role in the disease may be postulated. Mast cells, along with eosinophils and lymphocytes, are present in increased numbers in the airways of patients with asthma. Mast cell mediators are also increased in persons with allergies, with the concentrations of histamine, tryptase, and prostaglandin D2 being proportional to the degree of airway obstruction and bronchial hyperresponsiveness. Increased numbers of activated must cells and eosinophils (but not T cells or macrophages) were also found in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid in children. The mast cell is also known to release a range of cytokines (e.g., tumor necrosis factor-alpha and IL-4) that have various important functions, including upregulation of the endothelial adhesion molecules that are responsible for eosinophil recruitment from the microvascular circulation into the airways and subsequent activation. Mast cell staining for secreted IL-4 was found to be proportional to the infiltration of eosinophils and lower airway symptoms in patients with seasonal asthma, which is compatible with the concept that mast cells alone can susta...Continue Reading

Citations

Aug 5, 1998·Annals of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology : Official Publication of the American College of Allergy, Asthma, & Immunology·G R StentonA D Befus
Apr 8, 1998·The Australasian Journal of Dermatology·Y Miyachi, M Kurosawa
May 24, 2008·Clinical and Experimental Allergy : Journal of the British Society for Allergy and Clinical Immunology·Stephen T Holgate
Jul 16, 1999·Pediatric Pulmonology·A B Chang

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