National Center for Children′s Health, China; Department No. 2 of Respiratory Medicine, Beijing Children′s Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing 100045, China
Asthma is a common chronic respiratory disease, and as a heterogeneous disease, it is driven by a combination of immune, genetic, and environmental factors and involves multiple cells. In recent years, there has been increasing evidence that airway epithelial cells play a core role in the pathogenesis of asthma. As the first line of defense of the respiratory system against the external environment, airway epithelial cells mainly prevent harmful stimuli from entering through various intercellular connections and remove harmful foreign factors such as allergens and viruses through the mucus and cilia system and the antimicrobial peptides. The airway epithelial barrier can be disrupted when the airway mucosa is exposed to foreign harmful stimuli, and epithelial cells can release various epithelial-derived cytokines that effectively activate dendritic cells and type Ⅱ innate lymphoid cells, thereby triggering a subsequent helper T cell 2 immune cascade response that leads to the development of asthma. In view of these roles of airway epithelial cells in asthma, targeted therapeutic agents targeting the cytokines from airway epithelial cells such as thymic stromal lymphopoietin, are gradually coming into clinical use. This article reviews the role of airway epithelial cells in the pathogenesis of asthma and the future clinical applications of therapies targeting airway epithelial cells as potential targets.
XU Yinglian, TIAN Jing, ZHANG Xiang, ZHAO Shunying. Research progress in the roles of airway epithelial cells in the pathogenesis of asthma. Journal of Shanghai Jiao Tong University (Medical Science)[J], 2023, 43(5): 619-623 doi:10.3969/j.issn.1674-8115.2023.05.013
哮喘是一种常见的慢性呼吸道疾病;既往研究[1]表明,免疫系统过度反应是哮喘发病的中心事件。在致敏个体中,辅助性T细胞2(helper T cell 2,Th2细胞)通过释放特征性细胞因子引起过敏性炎症,诱导特异性免疫球蛋白E(IgE)产生,刺激Th2细胞发育和杯状细胞分化,并促进黏膜下腺体活动,促进嗜酸性粒细胞及其前体的募集、成熟和激活,诱发哮喘相关的病理改变和临床症状[2],这些过程最终会导致气道重塑。近年来的研究发现,除了免疫细胞外,以气道上皮细胞为代表的结构细胞在哮喘的发生中也发挥重要作用。气道上皮细胞位于机体和外部环境之间,是抵御外界刺激物的第一道防线[3],可显著影响哮喘的发生与发展。目前,上皮细胞屏障已成为气道炎症在病理生理学研究方向的前沿之一,多种针对气道上皮细胞及相关细胞因子的靶向治疗药物也逐渐投入临床应用。因此,本文就气道上皮细胞及其作用的研究进展作一综述,旨在进一步揭示气道上皮细胞在哮喘发病机制中的作用,为疾病的治疗提供线索。
The review was conceived by ZHAO Shunying, TIAN jing and XU Yinglian. The manuscript was drafted by ZHAO Shunying and XU Yinglian and revised by ZHAO Shunying, ZHANG Xiang and XU Yinglian. All the authors have read the last version of paper and consented for submission.
利益冲突声明
所有作者声明不存在利益冲突。
COMPETING INTERESTS
All authors disclose no relevant conflict of interests.
REDDEL H K, BACHARIER L B, BATEMAN E D, et al. Global Initiative for Asthma Strategy 2021: executive summary and rationale for key changes[J]. Eur Respir J, 2022, 59(1): 2102730.
MILLER R L, GRAYSON M H, STROTHMAN K. Advances in asthma: new understandings of asthma′s natural history, risk factors, underlying mechanisms, and clinical management[J]. J Allergy Clin Immunol, 2021, 148(6): 1430-1441.
NOUREDDINE N, CHALUBINSKI M, WAWRZYNIAK P. The role of defective epithelial barriers in allergic lung disease and asthma development[J]. J Asthma Allergy, 2022, 15: 487-504.
GHEZZI M, POZZI E, ABBATTISTA L, et al. Barrier impairment and type 2 inflammation in allergic diseases: the pediatric perspective[J]. Children (Basel), 2021, 8(12): 1165.
MORETTA A, SCIEUZO C, PETRONE A M, et al. Antimicrobial peptides: a new hope in biomedical and pharmaceutical fields[J]. Front Cell Infect Microbiol, 2021, 11: 668632.
VON MUTIUS E, SMITS H H. Primary prevention of asthma: from risk and protective factors to targeted strategies for prevention[J]. Lancet, 2020, 396(10254): 854-866.
LI B, ZOU Z, MENG F, et al. Dust mite-derived Der f 3 activates a pro-inflammatory program in airway epithelial cells via PAR-1 and PAR-2[J]. Mol Immunol, 2019, 109: 1-11.
GODBOLD G D, KAPPELL A D, LESASSIER D S, et al. Categorizing sequences of concern by function to better assess mechanisms of microbial pathogenesis[J]. Infect Immun, 2022, 90(5): e0033421.
LOOI K, BUCKLEY A G, RIGBY P J, et al. Effects of human rhinovirus on epithelial barrier integrity and function in children with asthma[J]. Clin Exp Allergy, 2018, 48(5): 513-524.
MILLS J T, SCHWENZER A, MARSH E K, et al. Airway epithelial cells generate pro-inflammatory tenascin-C and small extracellular vesicles in response to TLR3 stimuli and Rhinovirus infection[J]. Front Immunol, 2019, 10: 1987.
MICHALIK M, WÓJCIK-PSZCZOŁA K, PAW M, et al. Fibroblast-to-myofibroblast transition in bronchial asthma[J]. Cell Mol Life Sci, 2018, 75(21): 3943-3961.
ROUT-PITT N, FARROW N, PARSONS D, et al. Epithelial mesenchymal transition (EMT): a universal process in lung diseases with implications for cystic fibrosis pathophysiology[J]. Respir Res, 2018, 19(1): 136.
YÜKSEL H, TUNCA S. Destiny of airway disease: interplay between epithelial barrier and the innate immune system[J]. Tissue Barriers, 2022, 10(4): 2020706.
BOROWCZYK J, SHUTOVA M, BREMBILLA N C, et al. IL-25 (IL-17E) in epithelial immunology and pathophysiology[J]. J Allergy Clin Immunol, 2021, 148(1): 40-52.
WANG W, LI Y, LV Z, et al. Bronchial allergen challenge of patients with atopic asthma triggers an alarmin (IL-33, TSLP, and IL-25) response in the airways epithelium and submucosa[J]. J Immunol, 2018, 201(8): 2221-2231.
SAIKUMAR JAYALATHA A K, HESSE L, KETELAAR M E, et al. The central role of IL-33/IL-1RL1 pathway in asthma: from pathogenesis to intervention[J]. Pharmacol Ther, 2021, 225: 107847.
HUANG R F, MAO W, WANG G L, et al. Synergistic relationship between TSLP and IL-33/ST2 signaling pathways in allergic rhinitis and the effects of hypoxia[J]. Int Forum Allergy Rhinol, 2020, 10(4): 511-520.
YAO X J, LIU X F, WANG X D. Potential role of interleukin-25/interleukin-33/thymic stromal lymphopoietin-fibrocyte axis in the pathogenesis of allergic airway diseases[J]. Chin Med J (Engl), 2018, 131(16): 1983-1989.
MENZIES-GOW A, CORREN J, BOURDIN A, et al. Tezepelumab in adults and adolescents with severe, uncontrolled asthma[J]. N Engl J Med, 2021, 384(19): 1800-1809.
WECHSLER M E, RUDDY M K, PAVORD I D, et al. Efficacy and safety of itepekimab in patients with moderate-to-severe asthma[J]. N Engl J Med, 2021, 385(18): 1656-1668.
AnaptysBio, Inc. Efficacy, safety, and pharmacokinetic profile of etokimab (ANB020) in adult participants with moderate-to-severe atopic dermatitis (ATLAS)[EB/OL]. [2022-11-20]. https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT03533751.