Browse by author
Lookup NU author(s): Dr Michael Gray, Professor Barry Argent
Full text for this publication is not currently held within this repository. Alternative links are provided below where available.
Two Cl- conductances have been described in the apical membrane of both human and murine proximal airway epithelia that are thought to play predominant roles in airway hydration: (1) CFTR, which is cAMP regulated and (2) the Ca2+-activated Cl- conductance (CaCC) whose molecular identity is uncertain. In addition to second messenger regulation, cross talk between these two channels may also exist and, whereas CFTR is absent or defective in cystic fibrosis (CF) airways, CaCC is preserved, and may even be up-regulated. Increased CaCC activity in CF airways is controversial. Hence, we have investigated the effects of CFTR on CaCC activity and have also assessed the relative contributions of these two conductances to airway surface liquid (ASL) height (volume) in murine tracheal epithelia. We find that CaCC is up-regulated in intact murine CF tracheal epithelia, which leads to an increase in UTP-mediated Cl-/volume secretion. This up-regulation is dependent on cell polarity and is lost in nonpolarized epithelia. We find no role for an increased electrical driving force in CaCC up-regulation but do find an increased Ca2+ signal in response to mucosal nucleotides that may contribute to the increased Cl-/volume secretion seen in intact epithelia. CFTR plays a critical role in maintaining ASL height under basal conditions and accordingly, ASL height is reduced in CF epithelia. In contrast, CaCC does not appear to significantly affect basal ASL height, but does appear to be important in regulating ASL height in response to released agonists (e.g., mucosal nucleotides). We conclude that both CaCC and the Ca2+ signal are increased in CF airway epithelia, and that they contribute to acute but not basal regulation of ASL height.
Author(s): Gray MA; Argent BE; Tarran R; Loewen ME; Paradiso AM; Olsen JC; Boucher RC; Gabriel SE
Publication type: Article
Publication status: Published
Journal: Journal of General Physiology
Year: 2002
Volume: 120
Issue: 3
Pages: 407-418
ISSN (print): 0022-1295
ISSN (electronic): 1540-7748
Publisher: Rockefeller University Press
URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1085/jgp.20028599
DOI: 10.1085/jgp.20028599
PubMed id: 12198094
Altmetrics provided by Altmetric
