Goblet Cell Rebound and Airway Dysfunction with Corticosteroid Withdrawal in a Mouse Model of Asthma

RATIONALE: Although corticosteroids are highly effective at preventing allergen-induced increases in goblet cell numbers, we observed in unpublished experiments a rebound increase in goblet cell numbers in mice after the simultaneous withdrawal of corticosteroid and cessation of exposure to allergen that reached levels greater than those observed in mice exposed to allergen alone, without corticosteroid treatment. OBJECTIVES: To formally …