While asthma is considered an inflammatory disorder of the conducting airways, it is
becoming increasingly apparent that the disease is heterogeneous with respect to
immunopathology, clinical phenotypes, response to therapies, and natural history. Once
considered purely an allergic disorder dominated by Th2‐type lymphocytes, IgE, mast cells,
eosinophils, macrophages, and cytokines, the disease also involves local epithelial,
mesenchymal, vascular and neurologic events that are involved in directing the Th2 …

Asthma is an inflammatory disorder of the conducting airways that has strong association
with allergic sensitization. The disease is characterized by a polarized Th-2 (T-helper-2)-
type T-cell response, but in general targeting this component of the disease with selective
therapies has been disappointing and most therapy still relies on bronchodilators and
corticosteroids rather than treating underlying disease mechanisms. With the disappointing
outcomes of targeting individual Th-2 cytokines or manipulating T-cells, the time has come to …

Allergic diseases have reached epidemic proportions worldwide. An understanding of the
cellular and soluble mediators that are involved in allergic inflammatory responses not only
helps in understanding the mechanisms of current treatments, but is also important for the
identification of new targets that are amenable to both small-molecule and biological
interventions. There is now considerable optimism with regards to tackling the allergy
epidemic in light of improvements in systemic and mucosal allergen-specific …

Allergic diseases, such as asthma, rhinitis, eczema and food allergies, are reaching
epidemic proportions in both the developed and developing world. Key factors driving these
rising trends are increased exposure to sensitizing allergens and reduced stimulation of the
immune system during critical periods of development. In allergic disease, there is a
polarization of T-lymphocyte responses, and enhanced secretion of cytokines involved in
regulation of immunoglobulin E, mast cells, basophils and eosinophils, ultimately leading to …

Although asthma is an inflammatory disorder of the conducting airways involving TH2-type T
cells, there is increasing evidence for an important role played by the epithelium in
orchestrating the inflammatory response by interacting with multiple environmental factors to
produce a chronic wound scenario involving tissue injury and aberrant repair. Part of this
abnormal response is the consequence of impaired barrier function caused by a primary
disruption of epithelial tight junctions that allows inhaled substances to pass more easily into …