Asthma

Small changes in a particular gene, called ADAM33, are associated with the development of asthma and airway ‘twitchiness’, which is another common feature of the disease. ADAM33 is thought to play a role in the lungs of young children, possibly even before birth. What isn’t understood is how and why the altered ADAM33 gene causes susceptibility to the development of asthma.

It has been found that in asthma, the ADAM33 enzyme is no longer tethered to the surface of cells in the airways and becomes ‘rogue’. A higher level of this ‘rogue’ protein is associated with poorer lung function in patients with asthma. We awarded a Medical Research Foundation-Asthma UK fellowship to Dr Hans Michael Haitchi from the University of Southampton to investigate how airway remodelling occurs as a result of rogue ADAM33 enzyme acting on developing lung cells that it wouldn’t normally come into contact with.

Dr Haitchi will also investigate whether this airway remodelling affects reactions to common irritants such as allergens early in life. The research will help to understand more about how the ADAM33 enzyme works and its interaction with environmental triggers of asthma, as well as its role in predisposing babies to develop asthma.