Objective To explore the effects of prolonged inhalation of Aspergillus fumigatus ( Af)spores on epithelial cell injury and expression of epidermal growth factor receptor( EGFR) in airways of asthmatic rats. Methods 64 male Wistar rats were randomly divided into 8 groups, ie. chronic asthma group ( group A) , chronic asthma plus Af spores inhalation for 1 week ( group B) , 3 weeks ( group C) and 5 weeks ( group D) , chronic asthma plus saline inhalation for 5 weeks ( group E) , OVA-sensitized and salinechallenged group ( group F) , and OVA-sensitized and saline-challenged plus Af spores inhalation for 5 weeks ( group G) ( each n =8) . The airway resistance ( Raw) and change of Raw after acetylcholine provocation were detected using a computerized system. The concentrations of epidermal growth factor ( EGF) andtransforming growth factor alpha( TGF-α) in BALF were measured by ELISA. The extents of epithelial cell injury and goblet cell hyperplasia were evaluated on hematoxylin and eosin-stained( HE) and periodic acidschiff ( PAS) stained lung sections. The expression of EGFR in airway epithelia was demonstrated byimmunohistochemistry, and the level of EGFR protein in the rat lung tissues was measured by western blot.Results The concentration of EGF( pg/mL) ( 51. 72 ±8. 54, 68. 12 ±7. 85, 86. 24 ±9. 12, respectively)and TGF-α( pg/mL) ( 55. 26 ±9. 30, 75. 58 ±11. 56, 96. 75 ±14. 66, respectively) , detached/ inner perimeter of epithelium( % ) ( 11. 25 ±3. 12, 26. 45 ±5. 56, 28. 50 ±7. 50, respectively) , the ratio of goblet cell area to epithelial cell area ( % ) ( 16. 42 ±5. 24, 22. 64 ±6. 82, 36. 38 ±9. 21, respectively) , the integrated optical density ( IOD) of EGFR positive stain in airway epithelial cells ( 82 ±15,120 ±19, 165 ±21, respectively) , and the EGFR protein levels in lung tissues ( 0. 91 ±0. 26, 1. 61 ±0. 52, 2. 52 ±0. 78,respectively) in group B, C, and D were higher than those in group A, E, F and G( P lt; 0. 05 or P lt;0. 01) .The change rates of Raw( % ) ( 61. 91 ±5. 26, 84. 69 ±6. 38) in group C and D were higher than those in group A, E, F and G ( P lt; 0. 05 or P lt;0. 01) . The IOD of EGFR was positively correlated with detached/inner perimeter of epithelium( % ) and the ratio of goblet cell area to epithelial cell area( % ) ( r = 0. 692,P lt;0. 01; r = 0. 657, P lt; 0. 01, respectively) . Conclusion Prolonged inhalation of Aspergillus fumigatus spores can aggravate airway epithelial cell injury, up-regulate the expression of EGFR in airway epithelial cell and induce goblet cell hyperplasia, thus increase the airway responsiveness in rats with chronic asthma.