Abstract
Asthma, the most common chronic respiratory disease in children, affects numerous people worldwide. Accumulating evidence suggests that exposure to high levels of particulate matter (PM), either acutely or chronically, is associated with the exacerbation and incidence of pediatric asthma. However, the detailed pathogenic mechanisms by which PM contributes to the incidence of asthma remain largely unknown. In this short review, we summarize studies of relationships between PM and pediatric asthma and recent advances on the fundamental mechanisms of PM-related asthma, with emphases on cell death regulation and immune system responses. We further discuss the inadequacy of current studies and give a perspective on the prevention strategies for pediatric asthma.
Highlights
Asthma is the most common chronic respiratory disease in children, which is characterized by chronic airway inflammation, reversible airway obstruction, airway remodeling, increased mucus production, and airway hyperresponsiveness [1]
A growing body of evidence shows that high levels of particulate matter, ozone, sulfur dioxide, and nitrous oxide (O3, SO2, and NO2) are major airborne allergens enhancing the risk of atopic sensitization and exacerbation of asthma and asthma-like symptoms, which may increase the hospitalization rate, and/or mortality rate of asthma, especially in children [6, 7]
Another report has found that early-life exposure to particulate matter (PM) could cause pulmonary immunosuppression. They observed that infant mice exposed to PM +HDM failed to develop a typical asthma phenotype including airway hyperresponsiveness, Th2 inflammation, Muc5ac expression, eosinophilia, and house dust mite- (HDM-)specific Ig compared to only HDM-exposed mice
Summary
Asthma is the most common chronic respiratory disease in children, which is characterized by chronic airway inflammation, reversible airway obstruction, airway remodeling, increased mucus production, and airway hyperresponsiveness [1]. It currently affects approximately 334 million people and 10% of children worldwide [2, 3]. Epidemiological studies strongly suggest that the worldwide prevalence of childhood asthma is rising as a result of air pollution, especially exposure to particulate matter [4]. Despite the many epidemiological and clinical studies focused on the possible links between PM and childhood asthma, summary studies on the molecular pathogenesis of asthma are few. This review gives an overview of the etiology and the fundamental molecular mechanisms between PM and pediatric asthma and propose new potential effective prevention strategies for pediatric asthma
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