Scientists have reached a milestone in the research of childhood asthma. For the first time, they have clarified how a certain genetic defect in children initially leads to frequent infections and later to asthma. The study, published in the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, offers a novel approach to therapeutic interventions. It is the result of a close collaboration between Helmholtz Munich, the Technical University of Munich (TUM), the Center of Allergy and Environment (ZAUM), and the German Center for Lung Research (DZL).