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Microbes and asthma: the missing cellular and molecular links.
Tina Brar1, Srinivas Nagaraj, Shyam Mohapatra
1Division of Translational Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine, University of South Florida College of Medicine, Tampa, FL 33612, USA.
Current Opinion in Pulmonary Medicine
|November 25, 2011
Summary
Asthma is a complex lung disease with growing incidence. While progress has been made, the role of microbes in asthma development, exacerbation, and treatment remains poorly understood, highlighting key research gaps.
Area of Science:
- Pulmonary Medicine
- Microbiology
- Immunology
Background:
- Asthma is a complex, chronic respiratory disease with increasing global incidence across all age groups.
- Despite advancements in diagnosis and treatment, significant knowledge gaps persist in understanding asthma's multifaceted nature.
- Environmental factors, including allergens and microbial infections, contribute differentially to asthma pathogenesis in various age demographics.
Purpose of the Study:
- To review the current understanding of asthma, identify existing knowledge gaps.
- To explore the potential for translating research findings into improved asthma diagnosis and therapy.
- To highlight the emerging role of microbiome research in asthma.
Main Methods:
- Literature review of current asthma research.
- Analysis of recent findings in asthma pathology, genetics, cellular, and molecular mechanisms.
- Evaluation of the impact of environmental factors, particularly microbes, on asthma.
Main Results:
- Significant progress has been made in understanding asthma's underlying mechanisms.
- Microbiome research has opened new avenues for investigating the role of microbes in asthma.
- The precise contribution of microbes to asthma's onset, exacerbation, and therapeutic response is still largely unclear.
Conclusions:
- Asthma's complexity is influenced by environmental factors like allergens and microbes.
- Microbes may play a crucial role in asthma exacerbations, comorbidities, and potentially its causation.
- Further research into the microbiome's role is essential for advancing asthma management and treatment strategies.
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