Corticosteroid-resistant asthma is associated with classical antimicrobial activation of airway macrophages.

ABSTRACT:

Background

The cause of corticosteroid-resistant (CR) asthma is unknown.

Objective

We sought to perform gene microarray analyses by using bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) cells from well-characterized subjects with CR asthma and subject with corticosteroid-sensitive (CS) asthma to elucidate the differential expression of genes that contribute to the development of corticosteroid resistance.

Methods

The patients were characterized as having CR or CS asthma based on FEV(1) percent predicted improvement after a 1-week course of oral prednisone. Expression of selected gene targets was verified by means of real-time PCR and ELISA.

Results

Microarray analyses demonstrated significantly higher levels (>3-fold increase, P < .05) of transcripts for TNF-alpha, IL-1 alpha, IL

SUBMITTER: Goleva E 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3930345 | biostudies-literature | 2008 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature