Airway epithelial overexpressed CTSK induces airway remodeling through
EMTU activation in asthma
Abstract
Accumulating studies in recent years have revealed that airway
remodeling is involved in the occurrence, development, and treatment
sensitivity of asthma. Airway epithelial cells (AECs) regulate the
activation of epithelial-mesenchymal trophic units (EMTUs) during airway
remodeling through secretion of a series of signaling mediators.
However, the major trigger and the intrinsic pathogenesis of airway
remodeling is still obscure. Here, we show that the expression of CTSK
in airway epithelia increased significantly along with the development
of airway remodeling in HDM-stressed asthma model. Increased secretion
of CTSK from airway epithelia induced the activation of EMTU through the
activation of PAR2-mediated pathway. We found that CTSK is a potential
biomarker of airway remodeling for asthma patients that can reflect the
degree of airway remodeling and the severity of asthma. Blockade of CTSK
inhibits EMTU activation and alleviate airway remodeling effectively
that is an effective intervention target of airway remodeling. Thus, our
findings provide that CTSK is a potential biomarker for airway
remodeling which may also be a useful target for the targeted
intervention of airway remodeling in asthma patients.