This is an exciting time to be conducting asthma research. The recent development of targeted asthma biologics has validated the power of basic research to discover new molecules amenable to therapeutic intervention. Advances in high throughput sequencing are providing a wealth of “-omic” data about genetic and epigenetic underpinnings of asthma, as well as new cellular interacting networks and potential endotypes in asthma. Airway epithelial cells have emerged not only as key sensors of the outside environment, but also as central drivers of dysregulated mucosal immune responses in asthma. Emerging data suggest that the airway epithelium in asthma remembers prior encounters with environmental exposures, resulting in potentially long-lasting changes in structure and metabolism that render asthmatics susceptible to subsequent exposures. Here we summarize recent insights into asthma biology, focusing on studies using human cells or tissue published in the past two years. Studies are organized thematically into six content areas to draw connections and spur future research (Genetics and Epigenetics, Prenatal and Early Life Origins, Microbiome, Immune and Inflammatory Pathways, Asthma Endotypes and Biomarkers, and Lung Structural Alterations). We highlight recent studies on airway epithelial dysfunction and response to viral infections and conclude with a framework for considering how bidirectional interactions between alterations in airway structure and mucosal immunity can lead to sustained lung dysfunction in asthma.

中文翻译：

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 哮喘生物学最新进展


现在是进行哮喘研究的激动人心的时刻。靶向哮喘生物制剂的最新发展验证了基础研究发现适合治疗干预的新分子的力量。高通量测序的进展提供了大量有关哮喘遗传和表观遗传基础的“组学”数据，以及新的细胞相互作用网络和哮喘的潜在内型。气道上皮细胞不仅成为外部环境的关键传感器，而且还是哮喘粘膜免疫反应失调的核心驱动因素。新的数据表明，哮喘患者的气道上皮会记住之前接触过的环境，从而导致结构和新陈代谢发生潜在的长期变化，从而使哮喘患者容易受到随后的接触的影响。在这里，我们总结了对哮喘生物学的最新见解，重点关注过去两年发表的使用人体细胞或组织的研究。研究按主题分为六个内容领域，以建立联系并促进未来的研究（遗传学和表观遗传学、产前和早期生命起源、微生物组、免疫和炎症途径、哮喘内型和生物标志物以及肺结构改变）。我们重点介绍了最近关于气道上皮功能障碍和对病毒感染的反应的研究，并得出了一个框架，用于考虑气道结构改变和粘膜免疫之间的双向相互作用如何导致哮喘持续性肺功能障碍。