TeachableMedicalNews article 07262020
Teachable moment in classrooms:
- chemical basis of life chapter – protein structure determines biological activity
- cellular basis of life chapter – concept of receptor proteins in cell membranes
- tissue chapter – locations of smooth muscle
- immune system chapter – cytokines as stimulators of immune functions
- cardiovascular system chapter – white blood cell types in circulating blood
- respiratory system chapter – dilation and constriction of bronchioles
The news item: Recently a new form of asthma treatment was in the news:
‘Life-changing’ asthma injection will be offered to patients
Around 100,000 patients in the UK whose symptoms are too bad for traditional inhalers or steroids will be eligible for treatment with benralizumab.
The article mentions the disorder eosinophilic asthma, that it is caused by too many white blood cells in the lungs, and that this asthma limits what sufferers may do in their day to day lives.
So, Why Do I Care?? Asthma is a respiratory disorder that afflicts 2.5 million people in the USA. In the age group of 35-50 year olds the eosinophilic asthma is the most frequent. Inhaled pharmaceuticals, common for asthma treatment, come with undesirable side effects after long-term use. Attacking asthma from a different angle provide a new way to treat patients, and it may help people where inhaled asthma treatments fail.
Plain English, Please!!! First, let’s talk about asthma. While asthma may be started by different conditions, like allergies, cold temperature, the root cause of asthma is always the unwanted restriction of airflow into the lungs. An important part of our respiratory system is made up of tubes that channel air deep into our lungs, to the air sacks. A set of those tubes, the bronchioles, are 1/20 of an inch in diameter, and they have the ability to narrow and restrict airflow, because the bronchioles have smooth muscle in their walls. When those smooth muscles contract, the narrowed bronchiole restricts airflow to the air sacks.