短途运输应激对Wistar大鼠的影响

目的研究短途运输应激对Wistar大鼠的影响,建立评价啮齿类实验动物短途运输应激的技术指标体系。方法采用Wistar大鼠进行短途运输实验,测定其在运输中及运输后各阶段的代谢、神经内分泌和免疫功能主要指标,与未经历运输的对照组比较,分析短途运输应激的影响。结果Wistar大鼠血糖（GLU）在运输0.5 h和1 h时均升高,而在运输1.5 h时降低,运输结束后24 h时GLU再次升高;血清皮质酮（CORT）亦在运输0.5 h和1h时升高而运输1.5 h时降低,但运输结束24 h起即恢复正常;血清β-内啡肽（-βEP）从运输起至运输结束24 h时均降低,至48 h恢复正常。外周白细胞总数（WBC）自运输起急剧减少,于结束运输后的72 h恢复;免疫球蛋白G（IgG）、白介素2（IL-2）、γ干扰素（IFN-γ）及白介素1（IL-1）的血清水平在运输中及运输结束的即刻均没有显著变化,但在结束运输后的48 h内均不同程度降低,至72 h恢复至正常水平。肝脏hsp72 mRNA的表达随着运输时间的延长而极显著上调,运输结束后逐渐恢复,至72 h恢复至正常水平。结论短途运输应激对Wistar大鼠的代谢、神经内分泌和免疫功能均有不利影响,其经历常规短途运输（1.5 h以内）到达目的地后的健康适应期至少应为72 h;外周血中白细胞总数（WBC）、血糖（GLU）、皮质酮（CORT）、β-内啡肽（-βEP）、白介素2（IL-2）的水平可用于系统评价短途运输应激。     

湿热应激和习服对小鼠气道黏液分泌的影响

目的：通过观察高温高湿环境暴露下小鼠气道黏液分泌相关蛋白在不同时间段的变化,探讨应激和习服在湿热环境中对呼吸系统疾病的作用。方法：45只BABL/c小鼠随机分成5组（n=9）：对照组、湿热1组、湿热2组、湿热3组、湿热4组。对照组普通环境饲养,7 d后处死。其余各组置入气候箱接受湿度（95±5）%,温度（33±0.5）℃的高温高湿刺激,第12小时处死为湿热1组,第24小时处死为湿热2组,第4天处死为湿热3组,第7天处死为湿热4组。免疫组化法检测小鼠肺黏蛋白5AC （MUC5AC）、表皮生长因子受体（EGFR）、水通道蛋白1（AQP1）、水通道蛋白5（AQP5）蛋白表达。结果：把小鼠置入高温高湿环境后,小鼠肺组织在12 h时AQP5增高,在24 h时MUC5AC、EGFR的蛋白表达增高,与正常组比较差异均有统计学意义（P<0.05）;第7天,MUC5AC蛋白表达水平显著低于正常组（P<0.05）;其余时间段,MUC5AC、EGFR、AQP5蛋白表达均与正常组无明显差异。AQP1蛋白表达在湿热各组均与正常组无差异,与湿热1组、湿热2组比较,湿热3组、湿热4组表达则减弱（P<0.05）。结论：湿热应激可引起小鼠气道黏液高分泌,持续处于该环境则可能产生一系列更复杂的反应。     

草鱼呼肠孤病毒上调稀有鮈鲫鳃中TLR3和Mx基因的表达

鳃暴露在水环境中,增加了对疾病的易感性。为了研究稀有鮈鲫人工感染草鱼呼肠孤病毒过程中鳃部先天性免疫反应机制,我们克隆了抗病毒效应分子Mx基因的部分序列,用适时荧光定量PCR检测双链RNA的模式识别受体（Toll-like receptor3,TLR3）及I型干扰素指示基因Mx的表达。TLR3和Mx基因的表达在注射病毒后12h显著升高（p〈0.05）,TLR3的表达水平在注射后48h恢复到正常水平（p〉0.05）,而Mx的高水平表达一直持续到实验结束（p〈0.05）。结果表明在GCRV感染中,鳃能发生局部免疫反应,其干扰素途径被激活。     

黏蛋白2对猪流行性腹泻病毒感染的拮抗作用研究

肠黏膜屏障的完整性与猪流行性腹泻病毒（Porcine epidemic diarrhea virus,PEDV）的致病性密切相关。黏蛋白2(Mucin 2,Muc2)作为肠黏膜屏障的重要组成蛋白，在阻止病原体、毒素和异物入侵等方面发挥重要作用。本文旨在探究黏蛋白Muc2对PEDV复制的拮抗作用。通过观察PEDV感染仔猪空肠黏膜屏障情况，利用RNA干扰策略和分子病毒学检测方法在细胞水平上研究分析Muc2表达水平与PEDV复制的关系，并进一步探讨猪源Muc2天然蛋白发挥抗PEDV作用的具体阶段。结果显示：PEDV感染仔猪空肠段进行PAS染色发现，病毒感染后肠绒毛表面黏液层变薄，结构被破坏，杯状细胞明显减少；与对照组相比，干扰Muc2基因能够上调PEDV-N的mRNA及蛋白水平；Muc2蛋白添加后显著抑制PEDV-N蛋白的表达，且病毒mRNA水平显著下降（P<0.05）；在病毒感染前使用50μg/mL Muc2蛋白预处理1 h后，PEDV-N mRNA相对表达量极显著下降（P<0.001），而在病毒吸附、入侵和复制阶段无显著差异（P>0.05），表明Muc2具有降低PEDV...     

2021-01期目录

为研究团头鲂(Megalobrama amblycephala) 5-甲基胞嘧啶(5-methylcytosine, 5mC)羟基化酶TET1(Ten eleven translocation 1)基因的功能及其表达特性, 采用整胚原位杂交、qRT-PCR技术进行了胚胎、组织表达分析及其在急性低氧胁迫下的基因响应研究。序列分析结果表明, 团头鲂TET1基因全长为5526 bp, 编码1841个氨基酸。qRT-PCR结果表明, 团头鲂TET1广泛表达于各个组织中, 并在脑组织中高度表达。在胚胎发育过程中, TET1基因从受精卵开始就有表达, 并在受精后20—44h (20—44 hpf)都维持在一个较高水平。原位杂交结果表明, TET1基因在12 hpf信号相对微弱, 在24和36 hpf信号逐渐增强, 并且都集中在头部表达。通过qRT-PCR检测急性缺氧处理TET1的表达量, 结果表明, TET1基因在鳃和脾等组织中表达显著升高(P<0.01), 在脑、皮肤、眼和肾脏中表达显著降低(P<0.01)。在胚胎中, TET1基因相对表达量明显高于对照组, 尤其在24 hpf低氧处理组的表达量显著地高于对照组(P<0.001)。结果表明TET1基因在低氧应答反应中发挥着重要的作用。该研究结果为TET1基因在低氧响应及功能的保守与分化方面提供了新的视角。     

急性氨氮胁迫对于草鱼sod和hsp90基因表达及鳃部结构的影响

实验通过测定草鱼的24h半致死浓度, 鳃的细胞结构以及sod和hsp90的表达模式研究了草鱼在组织学和分子生物学水平上对高浓度氨氮暴露的响应。经过半致死实验确定的氨氮24h LC50为243 mg/L试验中草鱼被置于5个浓度的处理组中(50、72、104、151、220 mg/L), 之后取鳃组织进行组织切片分析, 取肝脏、肠和鳃来测定sod和hsp90的表达情况。经过高浓度的氨氮暴露处理, 鳃组织的细胞排列和结构产生了明显的变化, 并且sod和hsp90的表达受到了显著的上调。这些结果表明, 高浓度的氨氮能够损害鳃部的细胞结构并且诱导应激蛋白的表达。这个结果同样显示出, sod和hsp90可以作为评估草鱼氨氮暴露水平的良好指标。       

斑马鱼nr1d4a和nr1d4b基因的表达及其对不同环境刺激的响应

研究获得了斑马鱼nr1d4a和nr1d4b基因的cDNA,进行了序列比对和系统进化分析,并采用实时定量RT-PCR（qPCR）方法研究了其表达模式及对不同环境刺激的转录反应。研究发现,斑马鱼nr1d4a和nr1d4b是由基因复制产生的旁系同源基因,具有高度保守的DNA结合结构域和配体结合结构域。斑马鱼nr1d4a和nr1d4b的表达模式具有明显的差别。nr1d4a在胚胎发育早期的表达量很低,72 hpf时开始显著升高;而nr1d4b具有较高水平的母源性表达,6 hpf时的表达量明显降低,但也在72 hpf显著回升。nr1d4a在脑和肾脏中表达量最高,其次是鳃、卵巢、精巢和眼,在肝脏中的表达量最低;nr1d4b在卵巢中表达量最高,其次是精巢和脑,在肠道和心脏中表达量最低。斑马鱼nr1d4a和nr1d4b都能被多种环境刺激瞬时诱导表达。16℃低温处理0.5h就能显著诱导斑马鱼nr1d4a和nr1d4b基因的表达,但处理6h后其诱导效应开始下降并逐渐消失。除低温外,重金属（2 mol/L镉）、缺氧（5%氧气）和盐度（5）处理均能瞬时诱导nr1d4a和nr1d4b的表达,说明nr1d4a和nr1d4b基因可能参与斑马鱼对多种环境刺激的适应性反应。研究为深入揭示鱼类nr1d4a和nr1d4b基因的生物学功能及其表达调控机制奠定了基础。       

暗黑鳃金龟UDP-N-乙酰氨基葡萄糖焦磷酸化酶(UAP)基因的克隆、原核表达及功能分析

【目的】本研究旨在阐明暗黑鳃金龟Holotrichia parallela UDP-N-乙酰氨基葡萄糖焦磷酸化酶(UAP)基因HpUAP的序列特征和功能。【方法】通过PCR方法从暗黑鳃金龟2龄幼虫中扩增HpUAP全长cDNA序列,并进行生物信息学分析;构建pET30a-HpUAP重组表达载体,转化大肠杆菌Escherichia coli BL21(DE3),IPTG诱导蛋白表达;利用qRT-PCR检测HpUAP在暗黑鳃金龟幼虫不同发育阶段(1-3龄幼虫)和3龄第2天幼虫不同组织(体壁、中肠、直肠、回肠、马氏管和脂肪体)中的表达量。利用RNAi沉默暗黑鳃金龟2龄幼虫体内HpUAP基因后,观察其生长发育和存活情况,并测定RNAi 72 h后其HpUAP表达量和体壁几丁质含量。【结果】PCR扩增获得暗黑鳃金龟HpUAP 全长cDNA序列(GenBank登录号: MW676788),开放阅读框长1 461 bp,编码486个氨基酸残基,蛋白分子量约为53.9 kD。系统进化分析发现HpUAP与似牛嗡蜣螂Onthophagus taurinus UAP的氨基酸序列以较高的置信度聚为一个分支。经IPTG诱导可表达53.9 kD的HpUAP蛋白,与预期大小一致。发育表达谱结果表明HpUAP在1龄第1天和3龄第1天暗黑鳃金龟幼虫中表达量较高,组织表达谱结果表明HpUAP在暗黑鳃金龟3龄第2天幼虫中肠和体壁中表达量较高。HpUAP RNAi导致暗黑鳃金龟2龄幼虫生长与行动缓慢,体表颜色加深并皱缩;RNAi处理72 h后,与对照组（dsGFP注射组）相比,dsHpUAP注射组HpUAP表达量下降了93.06%,死亡率增加了40%左右,表皮几丁质含量下降了约29%。【结论】结果说明HpUAP参与几丁质代谢,在暗黑鳃金龟幼虫的生长发育过程中起关键作用。     

褶纹冠蚌过氧化物还原酶6基因的克隆及原核表达

过氧化物还原酶6具有谷胱甘肽过氧化物酶和磷脂酶A2的双重活性,在机体抗氧化保护及肺表面活性物质代谢中具有重要的作用。研究克隆和分析了褶纹冠蚌Prx6(CpPrx6)基因的cDNA序列特征。结果表明CpPrx6基因的cDNA全长1617 bp;其中5′端非翻译区为71 bp,3′端非翻译区为889 bp,开放阅读框为657bp,可以编码218个氨基酸。CpPrx6氨基酸序列与其他已知贝类Prx6的同源性为70%—72%。CpPrx6蛋白含有1-Cys型Prx共有的保守催化中心"PVCTTE"和脂肪酶基序"GKSWA",三级结构中包含6个α螺旋、12个β折叠,催化中心位于第5个α螺旋内。CpPrx6基因在褶纹冠蚌血细胞、外套膜、闭壳肌、肝胰腺、鳃等组织中均有表达,其中鳃的表达量最大。嗜水气单胞菌刺激后6h和12h时CpPrx6在肝胰腺中的表达量明显增加(6h,P<0.05;12h,P<0.01),在血细胞和鳃组织中12h的表达量增加,24h时恢复到正常水平。将CpPrx6基因亚克隆到pET-32a(+)质粒中构建了重组质粒,SDS-PAGE分析发现重组质粒在大肠杆菌DE3中获得了表达。     

温度对福寿螺抗氧化酶活性和 丙二醛含量的影响

福寿螺（Pomacea canaliculata）是外来入侵物种,对中国南方大部分地区的生态环境造成严重威胁,其生长和繁殖受到温度影响。本文研究了15 ℃（低温）、25 ℃（对照组）和36 ℃（高温）三种温度条件下,不同时间点（0、6、12、24、48、72 h）福寿螺体内超氧化物歧化酶（SOD）、过氧化氢酶（CAT）、谷胱甘肽过氧化物酶（GSH-Px）活性及丙二醛（MDA）含量的变化。实验结果表明,在低温（15 ℃）和高温（36 ℃）胁迫下,福寿螺肝胰脏和鳃中超氧化物歧化酶、过氧化氢酶、谷胱甘肽过氧化物酶活性以及丙二醛含量均呈现先升高后降低的趋势,并且在72 h时恢复到对照组（25 ℃）水平。低温和高温胁迫下,福寿螺鳃中的过氧化氢酶活性和肝胰脏中的超氧化物歧化酶活性在12 h、24 h和48 h时均显著高于对照组（P < 0.05）,并在48 h时达到最大值（P < 0.01）。鳃和肝胰脏中的谷胱甘肽过氧化物酶活性在12 h升高并在24 h时达到最大值。低温和高温胁迫下,丙二醛含量分别在24 h和12 h达到最大值。结果表明,温度能够诱导福寿螺抗氧化应激反应。福寿螺可以通过增加体内抗氧化物酶活力来缓解温度胁迫所造成的压力。鳃中抗氧化物酶活性变化快于肝胰脏抗氧化物酶活性变化,福寿螺氧化应激反应表现出组织特异性。     

Muc5b and Muc5ac are the major oligomeric mucins in equine airway mucus

Horses frequently suffer from respiratory diseases, which, irrespective of etiology, are often associated with airway mucus accumulation. Studies on human airways have shown that the key structural components of the mucus layer are oligomeric mucins, which can undergo changes of expression and properties in disease. However, there is little information on these gel-forming glycoproteins in horse airways mucus. Therefore, the aims of this study were to isolate equine airways oligomeric mucins, characterize their macromolecular properties, and identify their gene products. To this end, pooled tracheal washes, collected from healthy horses and horses suffering from respiratory diseases, were solubilized with 6 M guanidinium chloride (GdmCl). The oligomeric mucins were purified by density gradient centrifugation followed by size exclusion chromatography. Biochemical and biophysical analyses showed the mucins were stiffened random coils in solution that were polydisperse in size (M(r) = 6-20 MDa, average M(r) = 14 MDa) and comprised of disulfide-linked subunits (average M(r) = 7 MDa). Agarose gel electrophoresis showed that the pooled mucus sample contained at least two populations of oligomeric mucins. Electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry of tryptic digests of the unfractionated mucin preparation showed that the oligomeric mucins Muc5b and Muc5ac were present. In summary, we have shown that equine airways mucus is a mixture of Muc5b and Muc5ac mucins that have a similar macromolecular organization to their human counterparts. This study will form the basis for future studies to analyze the contribution of these two mucins to equine airways pathology associated with mucus accumulation.     

Muc5b is the major polymeric mucin in mucus from thoroughbred horses with and without airway mucus accumulation

Mucus accumulation is a feature of inflammatory airway disease in the horse and has been associated with reduced performance in racehorses. In this study, we have analysed the two major airways gel-forming mucins Muc5b and Muc5ac in respect of their site of synthesis, their biochemical properties, and their amounts in mucus from healthy horses and from horses with signs of airway mucus accumulation. Polyclonal antisera directed against equine Muc5b and Muc5ac were raised and characterised. Immunohistochemical staining of normal equine trachea showed that Muc5ac and Muc5b are produced by cells in the submucosal glands, as well as surface epithelial goblet cells. Western blotting after agarose gel electrophoresis of airway mucus from healthy horses, and horses with mucus accumulation, was used to determine the amounts of these two mucins in tracheal wash samples. The results showed that in healthy horses Muc5b was the predominant mucin with small amounts of Muc5ac. The amounts of Muc5b and Muc5ac were both dramatically increased in samples collected from horses with high mucus scores as determined visually at the time of endoscopy and that this increase also correlated with increase number of bacteria present in the sample. The change in amount of Muc5b and Muc5ac indicates that Muc5b remains the most abundant mucin in mucus. In summary, we have developed mucin specific polyclonal antibodies, which have allowed us to show that there is a significant increase in Muc5b and Muc5ac in mucus accumulated in equine airways and these increases correlated with the numbers of bacteria.     

Muc5ac Mucin Expression During Rat Skin Development

Some mucin genes have been detected during human embryonic and fetal organ development; however, little is known about mucin expression in epidermal development, neither in humans nor in other species. The present research was developed to explore Muc5ac skin expression during pre- and post-natal rat development. Immunohistochemistry (IHC), Western blotting (WB) and RT-PCR were employed. By IHC, Muc5ac protein was found early in embryonic epidermis from day 13 of gestation until seven days after birth when the surface epidermis became negative and the reaction was restricted to secreting sebum cells. In coincidence with IHC findings, WB analysis showed a band at approximately 200KDa at the same periods of development. Results were also confirmed by RT-PCR.Muc5ac expression in rat embryonic epidermis suggests that Muc5ac may play a protective role in embryonic skin previous to birth which may be replaced by pile covering. To our knowledge, this is the first report that confirmed Muc5ac expression during skin development.Key words: Muc5ac, skin, rat, development     

Abnormal expression of Muc5b in Cftr-null mice and in mammary tumors of MMTV-ras mice

Gel-forming mucins are large, high molecular weight, and heavily O-glycosylated proteins that are responsible for the rheological properties of mucus gel. Among them, the mucin MUC5B has been implicated in breast cancer and cystic fibrosis. We obtained a new polyclonal serum, named CP1, which was isolated from a rabbit immunized with a mouse Muc5b peptide. The immunoprofile of Muc5b was determined on paraffin-embedded and frozen mouse tissue sections and showed a similar expression pattern in mouse to that in the human. The “nonmammary” mucin Muc5b was detected in all mammary tumors analyzed from MMTV-ras mice, suggesting that the CP1 antibody is a valuable tool for investigating the involvement of this mucin in mammary cancer. We also found that uninfected Cftr ^−/− mice harbored more Clara cells, which were Muc5b-positive, than did their wild-type control littermates. The number of Muc5b-positive cells increased in Cftr ^−/− mice infected experimentally with Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and the mice developed mucus plugs in their bronchi and bronchioles with a high frequency of Muc5b content (87%, Cohen’s kappa = 0.82; p < 0.0001). These findings suggest that mice genetically deficient in the Cftr gene are predisposed to develop mucus plugs and that MUC5B may provide a valuable target for decreasing mucus viscosity in cystic fibrosis.     

Muc1 mucins on the cell surface are adhesion sites for Pseudomonas aeruginosa

Recently, we cloned and characterized a full-length cDNA of the hamster Muc1 gene, the expression of which appears to be associated with secretory cell differentiation (Park HR, Hyun SW, and Kim KC. Am J Respir Cell Mol Biol 15: 237-244, 1996). The role of Muc1 mucins in the airway, however, is unknown. In this study, we investigated whether cell surface mucins are adhesion sites for Pseudomonas aeruginosa. Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) cells not normally expressing Muc1 mucin were stably transfected with the hamster Muc1 cDNA, and binding to P. aeruginosa was examined. Our results showed that 1) stably transfected CHO cells expressed both Muc1 mRNA and Muc1 mucins based on Northern and Western blot analyses, 2) Muc1 mucins present on the cell surface were degraded by neutrophil elastase, and 3) expression of Muc1 mucins on the cell surface resulted in a significant increase in adhesion of P. aeruginosa that was completely abolished by either proteolytic cleavage with neutrophil elastase or deletion of the extracellular domain by mutation. We conclude that Muc1 mucins expressed on the surface of CHO cells serve as adhesion sites for P. aeruginosa, suggesting a possible role for these glycoproteins in the early stage of airway infection and providing a model system for studying epithelial cell responses to bacterial adhesion that leads to airway inflammation in general and cystic fibrosis in particular.     

Characterization of mouse muc6 and evidence of conservation of the gel-forming mucin gene cluster between human and mouse

Using degenerate primers designed from conserved cysteine-rich domains of gel-forming mucins, we cloned two new mouse mucin cDNAs. Blast searching showed that they belong to the same new gene assigned to chromosome 7 band F5. This gene is clustered with the three secreted large gel-forming mucins Muc2, Muc5ac, and Muc5b in a region that exhibits synteny with human chromosome 11p15. Computer analysis and sequence alignments with mucin genes predict that the new gene is composed of 33 exons and spans 30 kb from the initiation ATG codon to the Stop codon. Sequence similarities, domain organization of the deduced peptide, and expression analysis allow us to conclude that this newly cloned mouse gene is Muc6, i.e., the mouse ortholog of human MUC6. Like those of their human homologs, the genomic order and arrangement of the four mucins within the cluster of mucin genes are conserved.     

Effects of dexamethasone on Muc5ac mucin production by primary airway goblet cells

Mucus hypersecretion associated with airway inflammation is reduced by glucocorticoids. Two mechanisms of glucocorticoid-mediated inhibition of mucus production have been proposed, direct inhibition of mucus production by airway epithelial cells and indirectly through inhibition of proinflammatory mediators that stimulate mucus production. In this study, we examined the effect of dexamethasone (DEX) on mRNA expression and synthesis of MUC5AC by A549 human lung adenocarcinoma cells as well as Muc5ac and total high-molecular-weight (HMW) mucins by primary rat tracheal surface epithelial (RTSE) cells. Our results showed that in primary RTSE cells, DEX 1) dose dependently suppressed Muc5ac mRNA levels, but the levels of cellular Muc5ac protein and HMW mucins were unaffected; 2) did not affect constitutive or UTP-stimulated mucin secretion; 3) enhanced the translation of Muc5ac; and 4) increased the stability of intracellular Muc5ac protein by a mechanism other than the inhibition of the proteasomal degradation. In A549 cells, however, DEX suppressed both MUC5AC mRNA levels and MUC5AC protein secretion in a dose-dependent manner. We conclude that whereas DEX inhibits the levels of Muc5ac mRNA in primary RTSE cells, the levels of Muc5ac protein remain unchanged as a consequence of increases in both translation and protein stability. Interestingly, some of the effects of DEX were opposite in a cell line.     

Butyrate enemas upregulate Muc genes expression but decrease adherent mucus thickness in mice colon

Colonic mucosal protection is provided by the mucus gel, mainly composed of mucins. Several factors can modulate the formation and the secretion of mucins, and among them butyrate, an end-product of carbohydrate fermentation. However, the specific effect of butyrate on the various colonic mucins, and the consequences in terms of the mucus layer thickness are not known. Our aim was to determine whether butyrate modulates colonic MUC genes expression in vivo and whether this results in changes in mucus synthesis and mucus layer thickness. Mice received daily for 7 days rectal enemas of butyrate (100 mM) versus saline. We demonstrated that butyrate stimulated the gene expression of both secreted (Muc2) and membrane-linked (Muc1, Muc3, Muc4) mucins. Butyrate especially induced a 6-fold increase in Muc2 gene expression in proximal colon. However, butyrate enemas did not modify the number of epithelial cells containing the protein Muc2, and caused a 2-fold decrease in the thickness of adherent mucus layer. Further studies should help understanding whether this last phenomenon, i.e. the decrease in adherent mucus gel thickness, results in a diminished protective function or not.     

Characteristics of rodent intestinal mucin Muc3 and alterations in a mouse model of human cystic fibrosis

Human mucin MUC3 and rodent Muc3 are widely assumed to represent secretory mucins expressed in columnar and goblet cells of the intestine. Using a 3'-oligonucleotide probe and in situ hybridization, we observed expression of rat Muc3 mostly in columnar cells. Two antibodies specific for COOH-terminal epitopes of Muc3 localized to apical membranes and cytoplasm of columnar cells. An antibody to the tandem repeat (TR) sequence (TTTPDV)3, however, localized to both columnar and goblet cells. On CsCl gradients, Muc3 appeared in both light- and heavy-density fractions. The lighter species was immunoreactive with all three antibodies, whereas the heavier species reacted only with anti-TR antibody. Thus Muc3 is expressed in two forms, a full-length membrane-associated form found in columnar cells (light density) and a carboxyl-truncated soluble form present in goblet cells (heavy density). In a mouse model of human cystic fibrosis, both soluble Muc3 and goblet cell Muc2 were increased in amount and hypersecreted. Thus Muc2 and Muc3 contribute to the excess intestinal luminal mucus of cystic fibrosis mice.