Phase 2 trial proposes 129XeMRI and RNA sequencing to study airway remodeling in obese asthma

Status: COMPLETED | Phase: PHASE2 Condition(s): Asthma, Obesity Intervention(s): Hyperpolarized 129XeMRI (DRUG) 40% of all asthma patients in the US are obese. Obese asthmatics have more severe disease than lean asthmatics and do not respond as well to conventional anti-inflammatory therapies. This proposal will utilize 3D functional imaging with 129XeMRI and single cell RNA sequencing to study mechanisms driving regional airway remodeling and fibrosis in obese asthma subjects and in preclinical models of obese asthma. Detailed: ABSTRACT Obesity, a major comorbidity and a potential modulator of asthma, affects nearly 40% of asthmatics in the U.S., and increases its severity. Obese asthmatics do not respond as well to conventional anti-inflammatory therapies and new biologics targeting asthma are less effective in obese asthmatics compared to lean. Very little research has been conducted in obese animals or obese asthmatics, resulting in a major knowledge deficit. A key feature of asthma is airway remodeling and fibrosis, broadly defined as a change in distribution, thickness, composition, mass or volume of structural components of the airway wall of patients relative to healthy patients. Airway remodeling is difficult to diagnose in obese patients as mechanical changes in chest wall compliance can contribute to Primary Outcome(s): Percentage of Neutrophils in Peripheral Blood; Percentage of Eosinophils in Peripheral Blood Enrollment: 49 (ACTUAL) Lead Sponsor: Bastiaan Driehuys Start: 2021-04-01 | Primary Completion: 2025-01-31 Results posted: 2026-03-23