Therapeutic use of surfactant components in allergic asthma.

Pulmonary surfactant is a complex mixture of lipids and proteins that reduces the surface tension at the air-liquid interface. In addition to its biophysical function, some surfactant components play an important role for the innate and adaptive immunity of the lung. A negative modulation of the surfactant function was observed in allergic asthma leading to the assumption that the therapeutic application of surfactant components might be beneficial in this disease. So far, there are a number of preclinical and already some clinical studies demonstrating various effects of different surfactant components that were administered with preventive or therapeutic aim in allergic asthma. This review summarizes the current knowledge on the possibilities to treat allergic asthma with surfactant components.