Malfunction of Airway Basal Stem Cells Plays a Crucial Role in Pathophysiology of Tracheobronchopathia Osteoplastica

By functional evaluation and genome-wide profiling at both transcriptional and epigenetic levels, scientists revealed a role of airway basal cells in tracheobronchopathia osteochondroplastica progression by acting as a repository of inflammatory and TGFβ-BMP signals, which contributed to both epithelial metaplasia and mesenchymal osteo-chondrogenesis via extracellular signaling and matrix remodeling.