1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3 reduces mouse airway inflammation of neutrophilic asthma by transcriptional modulation of interleukin-17A.

Corticosteroid resistance and severe airflow obstruction have been proved to participate in the neutrophilic inflammation of airway in uncontrollable asthmatics. IL-17 is one of the pro-inflammatory cytokines produced by Th17 cells, and it plays an important role in the neutrophilic inflammation of airway in steroid-resistant asthmatics. Recent data have proved that 1,25(OH)2D3 represses IL-17A in inflammation and Th17-mediated autoimmunity through vitamin D receptors(VDR) at the level of transcription. Our study validated that 1,25-(OH)2D3 can modulate IL-17A on the transcriptional level by using Runx1, thus reducing inflammation in the airway of mice with neutrophilic asthma. 1,25(OH)2D3 may be promising for the therapeutic applications of neutrophilic asthma.