Airway Smooth Muscle in Asthma and COPD   BIOLOGY AND PHARMACOLOGY   EDITOR   K. Fan Chung Airway Disease Section, National Heart & Lung Institute, College London   Airway Smooth Muscle in Asthma and COPD is the first book of its kind that focuses entirely on the airway smooth muscle as the prime abnormality in airways diseases such as asthma.   Airways diseases are significant cause of morbidity and mortality across the world, and increasing research into these diseases has developed the understanding of pathophysiological processes in airways disease, such that there is now greater hope for new and more effective treatments. At the heart of this increased understanding is the important contribution of the airway smooth muscle that not only underlies the acute and chronic airway narrowing found in these diseases, but also contributes to the inflammatory and remodelling changes of airway diseases.   Professor Chung has published extensively on the pathophysiology of airways diseases and on airway smooth muscle biology and the contributors are all researchers in their specific fields. This volume will provide understanding for specialist physicians in pulmonology and allergy, workers in biomedical and pharmaceutical research, clinical investigators in pulmonary disease and scientists, of the approaches to discovering newer effective therapies for airways disease which will remain an important challenge for many years to come.   This book brings together under the same cover the biology and pharmacology of the airway smooth muscle in health and disease, particularly focusing on asthma and COPD, explaining: * How abnormalities form the basis of many pathophysiological abnormalities of airways diseases such as asthma and COPD   * Evidence for the participation of the airway smooth muscle in the inflammatory and remodelling response of the airways   * Mechanisms of action of currently-available treatments on airway smooth muscle is particularly emphasized and potential targets for the treatment of airway diseases are highlighted