The widespread use of aerosol therapy in the treatment of pulmonary diseases is based on optimizing drug properties and aerodynamic behavior of airborne particulates. In order to understand drug properties and aerodynamic behavior, it is important to recognize that each category of inhaler delivers a product with different physicochemical characteristics, and that these properties determine the...

The effects of corticosteroids on tracheal mucociliary transport (MCT) were examined in pigeons. Intramuscular administration of corticosterone had no effect at 1.0 mg/kg, while at a larger dose of 5.0 mg/kg, it slightly, but significantly increased the MCT rate. Metyrapone significantly decreased the MCT rate, and the inhibitory action was blocked by 1.0 mg/kg corticosterone. The present study...

OBJECTIVE We compared the adverse effects of two types of real ambient particles; i.e., total suspended particles from an electrostatic precipitator of a steel mill and fine air particles from an urban ambient particulate matter of 2.5 µm, on mucociliary clearance. METHOD Mucociliary function was quantified by mucociliary transport, ciliary beating frequency and the amount of acid and neutral...

Aims Genetic variants of pulmonary surface glycoproteins like Muc5a and Muc5b are known to affect mucociliary clearance, control of infections and maybe associated with pulmonary fibrosis [1-3]. We tested the hypothesis that Muc5b (rs35705950) is associated with bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD) in mechanically ventilated preterm infants. In addition, we aimed to identify common variants associa...

Objective: To evaluate the effects of passive inhalation of cigarette smoke on the respiratory system of guinea pigs. Methods: Male guinea pigs were divided into two groups: control and passive smoking, the latter being exposed to the smoke of ten cigarettes for 20 min in the morning, afternoon and evening (30 cigarettes/day) for five days. After that period, inflammatory parameters were stud...

BACKGROUND Cilia are complex and powerful cellular structures of the respiratory mucosa that play a critical role in airway defense. Respiratory epithelium is lined with cilia that perform an integrated and coordinated mechanism called mucociliary clearance. Mucociliary clearance is the process by which cilia transport the mucus blanket overlying respiratory mucosa to the gastrointestinal trac...

Mucociliary clearance (MCC), the process in which airway mucus together with substances trapped within are moved out of the lungs, is an important defence mechanism of the human body. Drugs may alter this process, such that it is necessary to know the effect of the drugs on MCC. Indeed, agents stimulating MCC may be used therapeutically in respiratory medicine, especially in patients suspected ...

In this study, we examined whether mucociliary clearance differed between cystic fibrosis (CF) knockout mice and wildtype controls. Additionally, we investigated whether infection with Pseudomonas aeruginosa, a common pathogen in the CF lung, affected this important host defence mechanism. Ciliary beat frequency (fcb) and particle transport (PT) were recorded using an in vitro lung explant prep...