Chronic Allergen Stimulation Yields T cell Dysfunction in Obese Asthmatics

Methods Prospective study of pediatric asthma and obesity with four groups of patients (6-18 years): obese asthmatics (OA), non-obese asthmatics (A), obese non-asthmatics (O) and non-obese and non-asthmatics (HC). Results Pediatric atopic obese asthmatics demonstrated immune dysfunction with increased type 2 immune deviation (including more CRTH2+ CD4 T cells and IL-13 secretion) and CD8 T cell exhaustion (concordant expression of multiple inhibitory receptors on CD8 T cells, including PD-1 and Eomes), in the context of altered cytokine and metabolic profiles with evidence of direct immunometabolic mechanisms.