The Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway regulates the development of airway remodeling in patients with asthma.

In this study, we investigated the roles of Wnt/β-catenin signaling in airway remodeling in patients with asthma. Wnt7a mRNA expression was prominent in induced sputum from patients with asthma compared with that from healthy controls. Next, we induced a chronic asthma mouse model with airway remodeling features, including subepithelial fibrosis and airway smooth muscle hyperplasia. Higher expression of Wnt family proteins and β-catenin was detected in the lung tissue of mice with chronic asthma compared to control mice. Blocking β-catenin expression with a specific siRNA attenuated airway inflammation and airway remodeling. Decreased subepithelial fibrosis and collagen accumulation in the β-catenin siRNA-treated mice was accompanied by reduced expression of transforming growth factor-β. We further showed that suppressing β-catenin in the chronic asthma model inhibited smooth muscle hyperplasia by downregulating the tenascin C/platelet-derived growth factor receptor pathway. Taken together, these findings demonstrate that the Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway is highly expressed and regulates the development of airway remodeling in chronic asthma. PMID: 26655831 [PubMed - as supplied by publisher]
Source: exp Mol Med - Category: Molecular Biology Authors: Tags: Exp Mol Med Source Type: research