Grant: Operating Grant

Asthma is chronic inflammation of airways which is widespread worldwide. Asthma is the most common chronic disease among children and it currently affects 300 million people worldwide with 250,000 annual deaths attributed to the disease. It is also estimated that there may be an additional 100 million more asthmatics by 2025. About 12% of Canadian children and 8% of the population aged 12 or older have been diagnosed with asthma. Because of economical and social issues associated with asthma, understanding the mechanisms involved in this disease is necessary to develop effective strategies to fight it. It has been shown that protein called, immunoglobulin-E, plays an important role in allergic asthma. However, its effect on airway smooth muscle cell has not been clearly understood. In this project, we want to study the role of immunoglobulin E in modulating airway smooth muscle cell function. Determining the functional outcome of immunoglobulinE in airway smooth muscle cells and signaling pathway(s) behind it, will pave the way to fully understand the role of this molecule in the pathogenesis of asthma and better therapeutic design in the near future.