How airway cells work together in regeneration and aging

Researchers at theEli and Edythe Broad Center of  Regenerative Medicine and Stem Cell Research at UCLA have identified the process by which stem cells in the airways of the lungs switch between two distinct phases — creating more of themselves and producing mature airway cells — to regenerate lung tissue after an injury.The study, published in Cell Stem Cell, also sheds light on how aging can cause lung regeneration to go awry, which can lead to lung cancer and other diseases.  “There currently are few therapies that target the biology of lung diseases,” said Dr. Brigitte Gomperts,a professor and vice chair of research in pediatric hematology-oncology at theUCLA Children ’s Discovery and Innovation Instituteand the paper ’s senior author. “These findings will inform our efforts to develop a targeted therapy to improve airway health.”The airways, which carry the air that is breathed in from the nose and mouth to the lungs, are the body ’s first line of defense against airborne particles — like germs and pollution — that can cause illness.Two types of airway cells play a vital role in this process: mucus cells, which secrete mucus to trap harmful particles, and ciliated cells, which use their finger-like projections to sweep the mucus-engulfed particles up to the back of the throat, where they can be cleared out of the lungs.The infectious or toxic particles that people breathe in every day can injure the airways and when that happens, airway basal stem ...
Source: UCLA Newsroom: Health Sciences - Category: Universities & Medical Training Source Type: news