Chymase-1: a “MAST”-er switch in COPD?

Chronic inflammation of the airways and lung tissue is an important feature of COPD. In recent years, a role for mast cells has emerged in numerous diseases, including COPD [1–4]. Mast cells are long-lived tissue-resident immune cells that secrete proteases and chymases (such as CMA1), interact with antigen-presenting cells and mediate immune responses [5]. These granule-filled cells were first described by Ehrlich [6] in 1878. The role of mast cells in lung disease has been shown in asthma [7], but remains relatively unexplored in COPD. In patients with COPD, there are changes in the density and localisation of tissue-resident mast cells [1, 2, 4, 8]. Mast cells are emerging as an important cell type in the chronic inflammation present in COPD and are poised to be the focus of future therapeutic approaches. https://bit.ly/3yotNbW