Functional consequences of human airway smooth muscle phenotype plasticity

Groningen Plasticity of airway smooth muscle phenotype in airway remodeling

Plasticity in canine airway smooth muscle

The large volume changes of some hollow viscera require a greater length range for the smooth muscle of their walls than can be accommodated by a fixed array of sliding filaments. A possible explanation is that smooth muscles adapt to length changes by forming variable numbers of contractile units in series. To test for such plasticity we examined the muscle length dependence of shortening velo...

Human Airway Smooth Muscle Cell

Airway smooth muscle cell culture: application to studies of airway wall remodelling and phenotype plasticity in asthma.

Chronic persistent asthma is characterized by poorly reversible airway obstruction. Histopathological studies of airways removed postmortem from patients with severe asthma reveal marked inflammatory and architectural changes associated with airway wall thickening. Increased airway smooth muscle content, occurring as a result of hyperplastic and/or hypertrophic growth, is believed to be one of ...

Point:Counterpoint: Alterations in airway smooth muscle phenotype do/do not cause airway hyperresponsiveness in asthma POINT: ALTERATIONS IN AIRWAY SMOOTH MUSCLE PHENOTYPE DO CAUSE AIRWAY HYPERRESPONSIVENESS IN ASTHMA

Airway hyperresponsiveness and obstruction are cardinal features of asthma. Compelling evidence now suggests that the key features of asthma in part are due to intrinsic differences in airway smooth muscle (ASM) function. Inflammatory mediators alter ASM phenotype, which directly modulates ASM hyperresponsiveness and promotes airway remodeling that further contributes to amplified airway obstru...