Can inhaled statins treat asthma?

Getty Images 666569792

An NIH-funded study with researchers at UC Davis Health is exploring whether lipid-lowering statins — used to treat high cholesterol — may have the potential to treat obstructive airway diseases by delivering the medication via inhalation.

The airway smooth muscle (ASM) resides within the airway wall. It controls and regulates airflow. A hyperactive ASM is linked to the worsening of asthma and COPD symptoms. Therefore, the ASM is an essential therapeutic target for both diseases.

Asthma is caused by inflammation and ASM tightening, which makes breathing difficult. To relax the ASM, current therapies stimulate specific receptors on the ASM cell surface leading to ASM relaxation, bronchodilation and improvement in symptoms such as breathlessness and wheezing.

According to researchers, current inhaler therapies that treat asthma and COPD remain inadequate in controlling symptoms. Statins are a class of lipid-lowering medications that can decrease cholesterol levels in those at high risk of cardiovascular disease. Beyond their cardiovascular benefits, the statins also have anti-inflammatory effects. In asthma pre-clinical studies, the statins decreased airway epithelial cell dysfunction, ASM cell proliferation, immune cell activation, and the release of various pro-inflammatory mediators.

In animal models, statins also showed efficacy in both acute and chronic allergen-mediated asthma. However, oral statin clinical trials in asthma have had mixed to largely negative results.

Researchers plan to expand their research with a phase 1 and phase 2 human clinical trials to test the safety and efficacy of delivering statins by inhalation to treat asthma and COPD.

More in Asthma
Page 1 of 15
Next Page