1. Investigation of lactotransferrin messenger RNA expression levels as an anti-type 2 asthma biomarker.
- Author
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Li NC, Iannuzo N, Christenson SA, Langlais PR, Kraft M, Ledford JG, and Li X
- Subjects
- Humans, Female, Male, Adult, Middle Aged, Cross-Sectional Studies, Epithelial Cells metabolism, Epithelial Cells immunology, Th2 Cells immunology, Bronchi immunology, Asthma genetics, Asthma immunology, Lactoferrin genetics, Biomarkers, RNA, Messenger genetics
- Abstract
Background: Lactotransferrin (LTF) has an immunomodulatory function, and its expression levels are associated with asthma susceptibility., Objectives: We sought to investigate LTF messenger RNA (mRNA) expression levels in human bronchial epithelial cells (BECs) as an anti-type 2 (T2) asthma biomarker., Methods: Association analyses between LTF mRNA expression levels in BECs and asthma-related phenotypes were performed in the Severe Asthma Research Program (SARP) cross-sectional (n = 155) and longitudinal (n = 156) cohorts using a generalized linear model. Correlation analyses of mRNA expression levels between LTF and all other genes were performed by Spearman correlation., Results: Low LTF mRNA expression levels were associated with asthma susceptibility and severity (P < .025), retrospective and prospective asthma exacerbations, and low lung function (P < 8.3 × 10
-3 ). Low LTF mRNA expression levels were associated with high airway T2 inflammation biomarkers (sputum eosinophils and fractional exhaled nitric oxide; P < 8.3 × 10-3 ) but were not associated with blood eosinophils or total serum IgE. LTF mRNA expression levels were negatively correlated with expression levels of TH 2 or asthma-associated genes (POSTN, NOS2, and MUC5AC) and eosinophil-related genes (IL1RL1, CCL26, and IKZF2) and positively correlated with expression levels of TH 1 and inflammation genes (IL12A, MUC5B, and CC16) and TH 17-driven cytokines or chemokines for neutrophils (CXCL1, CXCL6, and CSF3) (P < 3.5 × 10-6 )., Conclusions: Low LTF mRNA expression levels in BECs are associated with asthma susceptibility, severity, and exacerbations through upregulation of airway T2 inflammation. LTF is a potential anti-T2 biomarker, and its expression levels may help determine the balance of eosinophilic and neutrophilic asthma., Competing Interests: Disclosure statement Supported by National Institutes of Health grants HL142769 and AI149754. Disclosure of potential conflict of interest: The authors declare that they have no relevant conflicts of interest., (Copyright © 2024 American Academy of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)- Published
- 2024
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