In respiratory distress, lung airways become flooded with liquid and may collapse due to surface-tension forces acting on air-liquid interfaces, inhibiting gas exchange. This paper proposes a mathematical multiscale model for the mechanical ventilation of a network of occluded airways, where air is forced into the network at a fixed tidal volume, allowing investigation of optimal recruitment st...

House dust mite (HDM) challenge is commonly used in murine models of allergic asthma for preclinical pathophysiological studies. However, few studies define objective readouts or biomarkers in this model. In this study we characterized immune responses and defined molecular markers that are specifically altered after HDM challenge. In this murine model, we used repeated HDM challenge for two we...

Asthma is characterized by airway inflammation, mucus overproduction, airway hyperreactivity, and peribronchial fibrosis. Intelectin has been shown to be increased in airway epithelium of asthmatics. However, the role of intelectin in the pathogenesis of asthma is unknown. Airway epithelial cells can secrete chemokines such as monocyte chemotactic protein (MCP)-1 and -3 that play crucial roles ...

BACKGROUND Lungs of cystic fibrosis (CF) patients are chronically infected with Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Increased airway constriction has been reported in CF patients but underplaying mechanisms have not been elucidated. AIM To examine the effect of P. aeruginosa LPS on airway constriction in CF mice and the implication in this process of cytosolic phospholipase A2alpha (cPLA2alpha), an enzym...

Lung inflation has been shown to dilate airways by altering the mechanical equilibrium between opposing airway and parenchymal forces. However, it is not known how heterogeneously such dilation occurs throughout the airway tree. In six anesthetized dogs, we measured the diameters of five to six central airway segments using high-resolution computed tomography, along with respiratory input imped...

BACKGROUND Sub-epithelial extracellular matrix deposition is a feature of asthmatic airway remodelling associated with severity of disease, decline in lung function and airway hyperresponsiveness. The composition of, and mechanisms leading to, this increase in subepithelial matrix, and its importance in the pathogenesis of asthma are unclear. This is partly due to limitations of the current mod...

Recurrent wheezing and asthma often develop after acute respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) bronchiolitis, but the mechanisms of these sequelae are poorly understood. Using a guinea-pig model of human RSV lung infection, the effects of long-term viral persistence on three hallmarks of asthma: nonspecific airway responsiveness, airway inflammation and airway remodelling were examined. Guinea-pigs ...