Clinical and experimental allergy : journal of the British Society for Allergy and Clinical Immunology
-
The extent of epithelial injury in asthma is reflected by expression of the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR), which is increased in proportion to disease severity and is corticosteroid refractory. Although the EGFR is involved in epithelial growth and differentiation, it is unknown whether it also contributes to the inflammatory response in asthma. ⋯ These results suggest that in severe asthma, epithelial damage has the potential to contribute to neutrophilic inflammation through enhanced production of IL-8 via EGFR- dependent mechanisms.