ABSTRACT
One of the hallmarks of asthma is the accumulation of an abnormally large number of leukocytes including eosinophils, neutrophils, lymphocytes, basophils, and macrophages in the lung (1). There is now substantial evidence that inflammatory cells are major effector cells in the pathogenesis of asthma. Therefore, understanding the mechanisms by which leukocytes accumulate is of fundamental relevance to allergic diseases. Another characteristic of allergic inflammation is the activation of leukocytes, resulting in the release of biologically active mediators such as histamine from mast cells and basophils. It is now apparent that chemokines are potent leukocyte chemoattractants, cellular activating factors, histamine-releasing factors, and regulators of homeostatic immunity, making them particularly important in the pathogenesis of airway inflammation in asthma (2). In this regard, chemokines are attractive new therapeutic targets for the treatment of allergic disease. This chapter focuses on recently emerging data on the importance of chemokines and their receptors in allergic airway inflammation as well as on the potential for pharmacologically targeting these pathways.
