Table 1.

Characteristics Of Subjects

	Healthy volunteers (n = 8)	Severe asthmatics (n = 10)
Gender (M:F)	2:6	4:6
Age	49.9 ± 3.2	53.2 ± 4.9
FEV1.0 %pred.	90.7 ± 3.5	71.7 ± 5.6
FEV1.0/FVC	78.1 ± 1.5	69.1 ± 2.5
ICS	none	10/10
(mean dose)		a640 ± 72 μg
Oral prednisolone	none	6/10
(mean dose)		10.5 ± 3.0 mg
LABA	none	10/10

ICS inhaled corticosteroid, ^a fluticasone propionate equivalent dose, LABA: long-acting β₂-agonist