Fibers of the elastic system contribute to airway remodeling in asthma

SUMMARY OF THESIS^*

MAUAD, Thais - Fibras do sistema elástico participam do remodelamento brônquico na asma. São Paulo, 1998. (Tese de Doutoramento - Faculdade de Medicina da Universidade de São Paulo).

Fibers of the elastic system contribute to airway remodeling in asthma

Fibers of the elastic system (FES) are important in regulating airway patency and lung elastic recoil. Their possible role in modulating broncho constriction is not fully understood. Chronic inflammation and mechanical stretching present in asthma could lead to conformational alterations in the FES, contributing to in the airway remodeling observed in this disease. In airway mucosa, two layers of FES are discernible: one superficial network, attached to the basement membrane, and a deeper network, lying close to the airway smooth muscle. Using image analysis and conventional morphometry, we analyzed airway content of FES in central and peripheral airways in 31 cases of fatal asthma and 10 control lungs. Slides were stained using the Oxidized Resorcin-Fuchsin method. Optical analysis revealed fragmentation of the FES in the superficial network of central asthmatic airways. Morphometry showed the presence of elastosis in central asthmatic airways when the entire thickness of the mucosa was considered. In the superficial network elastic fiber content was significantly decreased. These results indicate that FES participate in airway remodeling in asthma. We also suggest that disrupture of fiber attachments at the basement membrane in the superficial layer could impair the mechanism of airway recoil in asthmatic patients.

*

This thesis is available at the Library of the Instituto de Medicina Tropical de São Paulo

Publication Dates

• Publication in this collection
  01 July 1999
• Date of issue
  Jan 1999