Novel role for integrin β4 in asthmatic children infected with Mycoplasma pneumoniae

Objectives: The regulatory role of integrin β4 (ITGB4) in asthmatic children infected with Mycoplasma pneumoniae (MP) was analyzed, and its potential molecular mechanisms and function were studied.Methods: We collected epidemiological data from 70,455 asthmatic children. The immunofluorescence assay was used to test 9 index IgMs against respiratory tract pathogens for 736 serum samples. Then, 98 children with severe asthma were treated via fiberoptic bronchoscope examination. During the surgery, the patients' lavage fluid was collected. Additionally, differences in transforming growth factor-beta (TGF-β) expression between the MP-infected and noninfected groups were examined. Experiments were performed using white blood cell counting methods and flow cytometry for 98 asthmatic children.Results: We tested 736 specimens, and the percentages of MP, RSV, and ADV infections were 50.27%, 11.68%, and 10.05%, respectively. The percentage of eosinophils was increased significantly in the AS-I-MP group, and their TGF-β expression levels were increased, which was related to tissue fibrosis. Furthermore, MP infection exacerbated the decreasing trend of ITGB4 expression in patients' blood compared with the noninfected group.Conclusions: There might be a chain reaction from MP infection to an increase in ITGB4, a decrease in TGF-β, a large accumulation of eosinophils and the development of asthma in children.