Excessive Repair Response Found to Worsen Asthma

Researchers have discovered that an eosinophil, one type of white blood cell, causes structural changes in the airway walls of asthma patients and can lead to permanent scarring and narrowing of the airway, resulting in worse asthma episodes. This finding was reported in the October 1, 2003, issue of the Journal of Clinical Investigation.

Eosinophils are known to cause inflammation of lung airways and this new research shows that they are also responsible for driving the process that leads to an excessive repair response by the body. This discovery may lead to the development of effective new asthma treatments that work by interfering with the remodeling process. Scientists have found that the monocloncal antibody anti-interleukin-5 both reduces the number of eosinophils in the bronchi and significantly decreases the deposition of special proteins associated with the remodeling process.

"Anti-il-5 will not be a magic bullet for asthma sufferers, but it could be an important first step in developing really effective drugs which interfere with remodeling,” said Professor Barry Kay, of Imperial College London (UK), who led the research. "In the future, drugs may be available which completely interfere with the process of scarring or remodeling and may prove beneficial in the long-term treatment of asthma.”





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