Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is one of the leading causes of death in the U.S. Because cigarette smoking is so importantly implicated in the pathogenesis of COPD and because mucus hypersecretion plays such an important role in COPD, understanding of the mechanisms of smoking-induced mucus hypersecretion could lead to new therapies for COPD. Cigarette smoke causes mucin overprodu...

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is initiated by exposure to a noxious stimulus, which, in susceptible individuals, initiates an inflammatory response in the lower airways leading to emphysema and mucus hypersecretion. Numerous therapies to address different aspects of the COPD disease process—the inflammatory component as well as bronchoconstriction, mucus hypersecretion, and pulmo...

In this paper, the authors update the present knowledge about three risk factors for the prognosis of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), which may be particularly relevant in elderly people: mucus hypersecretion, respiratory infections, and cardiovascular comorbidity. Chronic mucus hypersecretion (CMH) is a common respiratory symptom in old age, the relevance of which is analysed on ...

Mucus hypersecretion by airway epithelium is a hallmark of inflammation in allergic asthma and results in airway narrowing and obstruction. Others have shown that administration a TH2 cytokine, IL-13 is sufficient to cause mucus hypersecretion in vivo and in vitro. Asthma therapy often utilizes β2-adrenoceptor (β2AR) agonists, which are effective acutely as bronchodilators, however chronic use ...

Fourteen-member-ring macrolides are antibiotics with a variety of anti-inflammatory activities, and have repeatedly been reported to reduce mucus hypersecretion in conditions such as cystic fibrosis and bronchiectasis. Their structure is characterized by a macrocyclic lactone ring. Because human neutrophil elastase (HNE) plays a crucial role in the vicious circle leading to mucus hypersecretion...

BACKGROUND Sputum induction by hypertonic saline solution inhalation is widely used to study airways secretions in patients with asthma. However, hypertonic saline solution is a potent indirect bronchoconstrictor. STUDY OBJECTIVES We studied the validity of isotonic saline solution (0.9%) inhalation as a means to induce sputum by comparing it to hypertonic saline solution (4.5%) inhalation. ...

Human bronchial asthma is characterized by airway hyperresponsiveness (AHR), eosinophilic airway inflammation, mucus hypersecretion and high serum level of IgE. IL-18 was originally regarded to induce T(h)1-related cytokines from Th1 cells in the presence of IL-12. However, our previous reports clearly demonstrated that IL-18 with IL-2 promotes Th2 cytokines production from T cells and NK cells...