XXXX expression is co-localized to mast cells within the airway smooth muscle in @entity565 .

@entity1712 @entity32 @entity225 @entity4047 @entity565 @entity42482 @entity3646
BACKGROUND: Airway smooth muscle infiltration by mast cells is a feature of @entity565 and not @entity1712 . In @entity565 , Th2 cytokines have been implicated as playing a critical role in the development of airway @entity32 and hyper-responsiveness. Whether inflammatory cells within the airway smooth muscle release these cytokines is unknown. METHODS: We have undertaken a comparative immunohistochemical study in bronchial biopsies from 14 subjects with @entity565 , 10 with @entity1712 and eight normal controls recruited from two centres. RESULTS: The median number of @entity3646 + cells/mm2 smooth muscle was significantly higher in subjects with @entity565 than @entity1712 and normal controls for both the anti- @entity3646 mAb 3H4 (2.4, 0, 0, respectively; P=0.001) and anti- @entity3646 mAb 4D9 (1.6, 0, 0, respectively; P=0.02). There were no group differences in the number of @entity225 + cells (P=0.31). In six subjects with @entity565 , @entity4047 expression by cells within the airway smooth muscle was studied. The median (range) of @entity4047 +cells was 2 (0.9-2.7). Ninety-four percent of the cells expressing @entity3646 (3H4), 92% of those expressing @entity3646 (4D9) and 100% expressing @entity4047 in the airway smooth muscle were mast cells. Fifty-five percent of the mast cells within the airway smooth muscle co-localized to @entity3646 (3H4), 29% to @entity3646 (4D9) and 17% to @entity4047 . CONCLUSIONS: In @entity565 , @entity42482 + cells were present within the airway smooth muscle and were expressed predominantly by mast cells, suggesting that @entity3646 and @entity4047 may play an important role in mast cell-airway smooth muscle interactions.
