Consistency of T2 Gene Signatures in Severe Asthma: Key to Effective Treatments or Merely the Tip of the Iceberg?

摘要

The clinical phenotypes included within the broad "umbrella" definition of asthma are well known to be diverse. Gene expression and genetic variation studies have confirmed the observed clinical heterogeneity by indicating that asthma is a polygenic disease with multiple molecular roots. Yet refining these differences to the final development of distinct, universally accepted phenotypes to guide effective treatment choices has proven a challenge. Recently, the application of bioinformatic clustering techniques of clinical and inflammatory variables has identified modestly consistent phenotypes, but without the molecular characteristics essential to better understand underlying pathogenesis and best treatment approaches.