Longevity & AgingLung Disease Biology Over Labels: Two Airway Endotypes Found Across COPD, Asthma, and More
A study of 271 patients across asthma, COPD, bronchiectasis, and cystic fibrosis found that patients cluster into two distinct biological subtypes — neutrophilic or T helper 2 (Th2) inflammation — regardless of their formal diagnosis. These endotypes differed significantly in sputum properties, mucin composition, microbiome diversity, and mucus rheology. The neutrophilic cluster dominated in CF and bronchiectasis but was also present in nearly half of asthma and COPD patients. Findings support a precision medicine approach targeting shared biological traits across disease categories rather than treating each diagnosis as a separate entity, potentially enabling better therapy matching and cross-disease drug repurposing.
