Non-coding RNA regulation of macrophage function in asthma

As a chronic respiratory disease, asthma is related to airway inflammation and remodeling. Macrophages are regarded as main innate immune cells in the airway that exert various functions like antigen recognition and presentation, phagocytosis, and pathogen clearance, playing a crucial role in the pathogeneses of asthma. Non-coding RNAs (ncRNAs), mainly include microRNA, long non-coding RNA and circular RNA, have been extensively investigated on the regulation of pathological process in asthma. Recent studies have indicated that ncRNA-regulated macrophages affect macrophage polarization, airway inflammation, immune regulation and airway remodeling, which suggests that modulating macrophages by ncRNAs may be a promising strategy for the treatment of asthma. This review summarizes the effect of macrophages in asthma and the regulatory mechanisms of ncRNAs, as well as focuses on the role of ncRNAs-regulated macrophages in asthma, for the development of novel therapeutic strategies in this disease.