Professional article
English

Functional expression of connexin30 and connexin31 in the polarized human airway epithelium

Published inDifferentiation, vol. 75, no. 5, p. 382-392
Publication date2007
Abstract

Gap junctions are documented in the human airway epithelium but the functional expression and molecular identity of their protein constituents (connexins, Cx) in the polarized epithelium is not known. To address this question, we documented the expression of a family of epithelial Cx (Cx26, Cx30, Cx30.3, Cx31, Cx31.1, Cx32, Cx37, Cx40, and Cx43) in primary human airway epithelial cells (AEC) grown on porous supports. Under submerged conditions, AEC formed a monolayer of airway cells whereas the air-liquid interface induced within 30-60 days AEC differentiation into a polarized epithelium for up to 6-9 months. Maturation of AEC was associated with the down-regulation of Cx26 and Cx43. The well-differentiated airway epithelium exhibited gap junctional communication between ciliated and between ciliated and basal cells. Interestingly, Cx30 was mostly present between ciliated cells whereas Cx31 was found between basal cells. These results are supportive of the establishment of signal-selective gap junctions with maturation of AEC, likely contributing to support airway epithelium function. These results lay the ground for studying the role of Cx-mediated cell-cell communication during repair following AEC injury and exploring Cx-targeted interventions to modulate the healing process.

Keywords
  • Animals
  • Cell Communication
  • Cell Differentiation
  • Cells, Cultured
  • Connexins/genetics
  • Gap Junctions/genetics/metabolism
  • Gene Expression Regulation/physiology
  • Humans
  • Mice
  • Mice, Inbred C57BL
  • Respiratory Mucosa/metabolism/ultrastructure
  • Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction
Citation (ISO format)
WISZNIEWSKI, Ludovic et al. Functional expression of connexin30 and connexin31 in the polarized human airway epithelium. In: Differentiation, 2007, vol. 75, n° 5, p. 382–392. doi: 10.1111/j.1432-0436.2007.00157.x
Main files (1)
Article (Published version)
accessLevelRestricted
Identifiers
Journal ISSN0301-4681
627views
3downloads

Technical informations

Creation07/03/2013 08:37:00
First validation07/03/2013 08:37:00
Update14/03/2023 20:06:32
Status update14/03/2023 20:06:32
Last indexation30/10/2024 09:05:55
All rights reserved by Archive ouverte UNIGE and the University of GenevaunigeBlack