Journal article
Structure and function relationships of mucociliary clearance in human and rat airways
Nature communications, Vol.16(1), 2446
03/12/2025
DOI: 10.1038/s41467-025-57667-z
PMCID: PMC11897160
PMID: 40069153
Abstract
Mucociliary clearance is a vital defense mechanism of the human airways, protecting against harmful particles and infections. When this process fails, it contributes to respiratory diseases like chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and asthma. While advances in single-cell transcriptomics have revealed the complexity of airway composition, much of what we know about how airway structure impacts clearance relies on animal studies. This limits our ability to create accurate human-based models of airway diseases. Here we show that the airways in female rats and in humans exhibit species-specific differences in the distribution of ciliated and secretory cells as well as in ciliary beat, resulting in significantly higher clearance effectiveness in humans. We further reveal that standard lab-grown cultures exhibit lower clearance effectiveness compared to human airways, and we identify the underlying structural differences. By combining diverse experiments and physics-based modeling, we establish universal benchmarks to assess human airway function, interpret preclinical models, and better understand disease-specific impairments in mucociliary clearance.
Details
- Title: Subtitle
- Structure and function relationships of mucociliary clearance in human and rat airways
- Creators
- Doris Roth - Technical University of MunichAyşe Tuğçe Şahin - Technical University of MunichFeng Ling - Technical University of MunichNiels Tepho - Technical University of MunichChristiana N Senger - Hastings CenterErik J Quiroz - University of Southern CaliforniaBen A Calvert - Hastings CenterAnne M van der Does - Leiden University Medical CenterTankut G Güney - German Center for Lung ResearchSarah Glasl - Technical University of MunichAnnemarie van Schadewijk - Leiden University Medical CenterLaura von Schledorn - Medizinische Hochschule HannoverRuth Olmer - Medizinische Hochschule HannoverEva Kanso - University of Southern CaliforniaJanna C Nawroth - Hastings CenterAmy L Ryan - University of Southern California
- Resource Type
- Journal article
- Publication Details
- Nature communications, Vol.16(1), 2446
- DOI
- 10.1038/s41467-025-57667-z
- PMID
- 40069153
- PMCID
- PMC11897160
- NLM abbreviation
- Nat Commun
- ISSN
- 2041-1723
- eISSN
- 2041-1723
- Publisher
- NATURE PORTFOLIO
- Grant note
- R01HL152633 / U.S. Department of Health & Human Services | NIH | National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI)
- Language
- English
- Date published
- 03/12/2025
- Academic Unit
- Anatomy and Cell Biology
- Record Identifier
- 9984800198502771
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