Treatment of allergic airway inflammation and airway hyperresponsiveness using RORγt specific RNAi

Introduction: Recent studies suggest T helper 17 (TH17) cells as important players in the progression of asthma towards a severe phenotype. Characterized by the production of pro-inflammatory cytokines like TNF-α, IL-1ß, IL-22 and IL-17A, TH17 cells appear to act as general promoters of chronic inflammatory responses. These effector functions are initiated by the transcription factor Retinoic acid-related Orphan Receptor gamma (RORγ) t, which is exclusively expressed in TH17 cells and essential for their differentiation. Objective: To evaluate whether targeting the TH17-specific transcription factor RORγt is a s…