A nonmuscle myosin light chain kinase-dependent gene signature in peripheral blood mononuclear cells is linked to human asthma severity and exacerbation status.

ABSTRACT: Asthma is increasingly recognized as a heterogeneous disease influenced by complex genetic and environmental contributions. Myosin light chain kinase (MLCK; gene symbol, MYLK), especially the nonmuscle isoform nmMLCK, is a cytoskeleton protein known to be related to human asthma susceptibility and severity, findings confirmed in preclinical models of asthmatic inflammation. In this study, we define the central capacity for a nmMLCK-influenced gene signature in human peripheral blood mononuclear cells to predict human asthma severity and exacerbation status. We refined this signature from a list of nmMLCK-influenced genes identified in lung tissues of nmMLCK knockout mice exposed to inflammatory stimuli (ventilator-induced lung injury), with subsequent identification of nmMLCK-influenced ge

SUBMITTER: Zhou T 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4449245 | biostudies-literature | 2015 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature