Toll-like receptors and calcium-activated chloride/potassium channels as immunomodulators of allergic airway inflammation and asthma: a public health research experience in State of Nebraska, USA

Allergic airway inflammation and asthma have emerged as major public health problem in the Midwest, United States of America. Targeting Toll-like receptor (TLR) signaling and Calcium-activated Chloride (ClCa)/Potassium (KCa) Channels in unraveling the cellular/molecular mechanisms underlying genetic susceptibility to inflammatory diseases in specific human patient population subset(s) is emerging as an attractive immunotherapeutic pharmacological strategy in management/prevention of asthma. Objectives: My pilot study aimed to investigate the role of TLRs and ClCa/KCa ion channels in human bronchial epithelial cells (NHBEC, BEAS-2B from ATCC), and eosinophils-derived from asthma patients of North American ethnicity. Methods: Whole cell patch clamp electrophysiological recordings were conducted for ClCa and KCa currents in cultured cells (passages P3-P7) grown on cover-slips. RNA and Protein were extracted from NHBECs, BEAS-2B and eosinophils using Trizol and RIPA methods. Pipette and bath solutions for electrophysiology were subjected to stringent pH and osmolality checks prior