Abstract

ZHAO JIAN JUN, ZHAO FENG QIN, WANG JING, SONG YU MING, TAN PING, YANG LEI

Hepatocyte growth factor (HGF) is a multifunctional polypeptide with a broad range of functions. It acts as an endocrine, paracrine and autocrine factor and regulates a wide range of cellular processes such as cell survival, proliferation, migration and differentiation. Recently, some animal experiments suggest that HGF play important part role in the pathogenesis of asthma. On the basis of these results, the present study was designed to determine whether serum HGF levels are elevated in patients with asthma, and whether its level are associated with the severity of disease. We found that HGF levels were significantly higher in three asthmatic patient groups as compared with healthy control group [9.8 (6.3-14.5), 11.4 (8.5-16.2), 13.7 (9.9-18.3) and 2.3 (1.6-3.7) ng/mL, respectively, P<0.01]. The HGF levels were also elevated associated with the severity of disease, but this difference was not significant. The data suggest a role for HGF in the pathogenesis of asthma. Further studies are needed to clarify the involvement of HGF in various aspects of asthma.