de Prost N, Dreyfuss D, Saumon G. Evaluation of two-way protein fluxes across the alveolo-capillary membrane by scintigraphy in rats: effect of lung inflation. J Appl Physiol 102: 794–802, 2007. First published September 21, 2006; doi:10.1152/japplphysiol.00742.2006.— Pulmonary microvascular and alveolar epithelial permeability were evaluated in vivo by scintigraphic imaging during lung distens...

Alveolar epithelia play an essential role in maintaining the integrity and homeostasis of lungs, in which alveolar epithelial type II cells (AECII) are a cell type with stem cell potential for epithelial injury repair and regeneration. However, mechanisms behind the physiological and pathological roles of alveolar epithelia in human lungs remain largely unknown, partially owing to the difficult...

Mechanisms leading to fibroblast accumulation during pulmonary fibrogenesis remain unclear. Although there is in vitro evidence of lung alveolar epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT), whether EMT occurs within the lung is currently unknown. Biopsies from fibrotic human lungs demonstrate epithelial cells with mesenchymal features, suggesting EMT. To more definitively test the capacity of al...

In an effort to understand the preliminary effects of aerodynamic stress on alveolar epithelial cells, we developed a multifluidic cell culture platform capable of supporting alveolar cultures at an air-liquid interface under constant air flow and exposure to varying pressure stimuli on the apical side while providing nourishment on the basolateral plane. Our current study involved utilizing th...

Granzyme A (GrA) is a serine protease produced in cytotoxic lymphocytes, lung epithelial cells (alveolar type-II cells), and alveolar macrophages. In the present study, recombinant rat GrA (rGrA) was found to cause rounding and detachment of an alveolar type-II epithelial cell line, A549. Also, rGrA stimulated release of a neutrophil chemoattractant, interleukin-8, from the cells, via a mechani...

Two set of 2-aryl-5,6-dihydropyrrolo[2,1-a] isoquinolines were designed and synthesized to evaluate their biological activities as topoisomerase inhibitors. Cytotoxic activity of the synthesized compounds 4a-e and 7a-d was assessed against several human cancer cell lines, including MCF-7 (breast cancer cell), HepG2 (liver hepatocellular cells), A549 (adenocarcinomic human alveolar basal epithel...

An experimental model of carrageenan-induced pneumonia in rabbits was used to study the proliferation and desquamation of alveolar lining epithelium, light and electron microscopically. Observation at 5 hr after intrapulmonary injection of 0.5% lambda carrageenan solution revealed epithelial cell (predominantly type 1 pneumocyte) injury, exposing the basement membrane of the alveolar wall, and ...

The alveolar epithelium responds to injury by upregula¬ tion of various specialized functions: proliferation and differentiation of epithelial cells, maintenance of electroyte and water balance, secretion of surfactant and associated proteins, and metabolism of xenobiotics and toxins. Genes upregulated during lung epithelial injury caused by a variety of environmental agents may serve as sensit...

Although Mycobacterium tuberculosis is assumed to infect primarily alveolar macrophages after being aspirated into the lung in aerosol form, it is plausible to hypothesize that M. tuberculosis can come in contact with alveolar epithelial cells upon arrival into the alveolar space. Therefore, as a first step toward investigation of the interaction between M. tuberculosis and alveolar epithelial ...

Alveolar and bronchial epithelial cells have been shown to have regulatory functions in the maintenance of lung structure and function. Recent evidence supports the premise that these cells can synthesize a variety of extracellular matrix components in vitro, suggesting an active participation in connective tissue remodeling. Their possible role in extracellular matrix degradation, however, is ...