Human Rhinovirus Infection and Airway Remodeling Mediators

Although changes in the lungs, known as remodeling, are a feature of asthma, the causes and mechanisms involved in the process have not yet been found. Recently, it has been established that remodeling can be observed in children prior to a formal diagnosis of asthma. Clinical studies indicate that HRV, "common cold" infections, are a common cause of recurrent respiratory illnesses in childhood, and children with HRV-associated wheezing episodes have an increased risk of developing asthma. This led to the hypothesis that HRV infections may play a central role in the start of the airway remodeling leading to asthma. The goal of this study is to determine if alterations in relevant airway remodeling growth factors differ between healthy controls and asthmatic subjects, pre- and post-HRV infection. These growth factors will be assessed in bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) fluid and endobronchial biopsy tissues and correlated with viral levels in both nasal lavage and BAL fluid.