Cystic Fibrosis Research Today is a free monthly online journal that collates and summarizes the latest research about Cystic Fibrosis, including details on symptoms, genetics, treatment, information.

Characterization of wild-type and deltaF508 cystic fibrosis transmembrane regulator in human respiratory epithelia.

Kreda SM, Mall M, Mengos A, Rochelle L, Yankaskas J, Riordan JR, Boucher RC

Cystic Fibrosis/Pulmonary Research and Treatment Center, School of Medicine, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC 27599-7248, USA. silkre@med.unc.edu

Previous studies in native tissues have produced conflicting data on the localization and metabolic fate of WT and deltaF508 cystic fibrosis transmembrane regulator (CFTR) in the lung. Combining immunocytochemical and biochemical studies utilizing new high-affinity CFTR mAbs with ion transport assays, we examined both 1) the cell type and region specific expression of CFTR in normal airways and 2) the metabolic fate of deltaF508 CFTR and associated ERM proteins in the cystic fibrosis lung. Studies of lungs from a large number of normal subjects revealed that WT CFTR protein localized to the apical membrane of ciliated cells within the superficial epithelium and gland ducts. In contrast, other cell types in the superficial, gland acinar, and alveolar epithelia expressed little WT CFTR protein. No deltaF508 CFTR mature protein or function could be detected in airway specimens freshly excised from a large number of deltaF508 homozygous subjects, despite an intact ERM complex. In sum, our data demonstrate that WT CFTR is predominantly expressed in ciliated cells, and deltaF508 CFTR pathogenesis in native tissues, like heterologous cells, reflects loss of normal protein processing.

Published 25 April 2005 in Mol Biol Cell, 16(5): 2154-67.
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