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IRRITANT AGONISTS AND AIR POLLUTANTS: NEUROLOGICALLY MEDIATED RESPIRATORY AND CARDIOVASCULAR RESPONSES
Citation:
GAVETT, S. H., M. Kollarik, AND B. Undem. IRRITANT AGONISTS AND AIR POLLUTANTS: NEUROLOGICALLY MEDIATED RESPIRATORY AND CARDIOVASCULAR RESPONSES. Second, Chapter 6, W. Michael Foster and Daniel L. Costa (ed.), Air Pollutants and the Respiratory Tract. Taylor & Francis Health Sciences, London, Uk, 204:195-232, (2004).
Impact/Purpose:
To review the basic neurobiology of the airways, with a special emphasis on the mucosal sensory innervation and the reflexes their activation engender.
Description:
Situated within and just beneath the airway epithelium is a dense plexus of sensory nerves. These sensory (afferent) nerves serve as sentinels at the gateway between the organism and the inhaled air. This airway mucosal nerve plexus is present from the nose to the most peripheral airways. Irritants in the polluted air interact with these sensory nerves initiating a cascade of events that may lead to conscious sensations of irritation, subconscious changes in autonomic neural control, and/or defensive reflexes including cough and sneezing. Excessive afferent nerve irritation contributes to pathogenesis of cardio-respiratory diseases in susceptible individuals, or exacerbates preexisting diseases such as asthma and chronic obstructive lung disease. In this chapter we will overview the basic neurobiology of the airways, with a special emphasis on the mucosal sensory innervation and the reflexes their activation engender. In addition the literature that pertains specifically to airborne irritant mediated neuronal reflexes will be reviewed.