Cultures of human tracheal gland cells of mucous or serous phenotype |
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Authors: | Walter E Finkbeiner Lorna T Zlock Irum Mehdi Jonathan H Widdicombe |
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Institution: | (1) Department of Pathology, University of California, San Francisco, CA, USA;(2) Department of Physiology & Membrane Biology, University of California-Davis, Davis, CA 95616-8664, USA; |
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Abstract: | There are two main epithelial cell types in the secretory tubules of mammalian glands: serous and mucous. The former is believed
to secrete predominantly water and antimicrobials, the latter mucins. Primary cultures of human airway gland epithelium have
been available for almost 20 yr, but they are poorly differentiated and lack clear features of either serous or mucous cells.
In this study, by varying growth supports and media, we have produced cultures from human airway glands that in terms of their
ultrastructure and secretory products resemble either mucous or serous cells. Of four types of porous-bottomed insert tested,
polycarbonate filters (Transwells) most strongly promoted the mucous phenotype. Coupled with the addition of epidermal growth
factor (EGF), this growth support produced “mucous” cells that contained the large electron-lucent granules characteristic
of native mucous cells, but lacked the small electron-dense granules characteristic of serous cells. Furthermore, they showed
high levels of mucin secretion and low levels of release of lactoferrin and lysozyme (markers of native serous cells). By
contrast, growth on polyethylene terephthalate filters (Cyclopore) in medium lacking EGF produced “serous” cells in which
small electron-dense granules replaced the electron-lucent ones, and the cells had high levels of lactoferrin and lysozyme
but low levels of mucins. Measurements of transepithelial resistance and short-circuit current showed that both “serous” and
“mucous” cell cultures possessed tight junctions, had become polarized, and were actively secreting Cl. |
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