BACKGROUND The link between mucus plugs and airflow obstruction has not been established in chronic severe asthma, and the role of eosinophils and their products in mucus plug formation is unknown. METHODS In clinical studies, we developed and applied a bronchopulmonary segment-based scoring system to quantify mucus plugs on multidetector computed tomography (MDCT) lung scans from 146 subject...

Cervical mucus thinning and release during the female reproductive cycle is thought to rely mainly on fluid secretion. However, we now find that mucus released from the murine reproductive tract critically depends upon concurrent bicarbonate (HCO(3)(-)) secretion. Prostaglandin E(2) (PGE(2))- and carbachol-stimulated mucus release was severely inhibited in the absence of serosal HCO(3)(-), HCO(...

Two C57BL/6 mice colonies maintained in two rooms of the same specific pathogen-free (SPF) facility were found to have different gut microbiota and a mucus phenotype that was specific for each colony. The thickness and growth of the colon mucus were similar in the two colonies. However, one colony had mucus that was impenetrable to bacteria or beads the size of bacteria-which is comparable to w...

Recombinant human deoxyribonuclease (rhDNase) has been demonstrated to reduce the viscosity of purulent cystic fibrosis (CF) respiratory mucus, to improve pulmonary function and to reduce the risk of respiratory tract infectious exacerbations, but its effect on mucus transportability has not so far been investigated. The dose-dependent effect of rhDNase was analysed in vitro on mucus transport ...

We investigate the effects of perfusion with electrolyte solution on secretion of mucus by the frog palatine mucosa. The amount of mucus secreted was determined by measuring the contents of hexosamine in the mucus. Ciliary movement was examined by the particle transport method. The goblet cells, which secret mucus in the ciliated epithelium, were examined under light and electron microscopes af...

The development of pathologic mucus, which is not readily cleared from the airways, is an important contributor to the morbidity and mortality associated with asthma. It is not clear how the major airway mucins MUC5AC and MUC5B are organized within the mucus gel or how this gel contributes to airway obstruction in asthma. Here, we demonstrated that mucus plugs from individuals with fatal asthma...

Airway inflammation is believed to stimulate mucus production in asthmatic patients. Increased mucus secretion is an important clinical symptom and contributes to airway obstruction in asthma. Activated CD4 Th1 and Th2 cells have both been identified in airway biopsies of asthmatics but their role in mucus production is not clear. Using CD4 T cells from mice transgenic for the OVA-specific TCR,...

The mucus that protects the surface of the gastrointestinal tract is rich in specialized O-glycoproteins called mucins, but little is known about other mucus proteins or their variability along the gastrointestinal tract. To ensure that only mucus was analyzed, we combined collection from explant tissues mounted in perfusion chambers, liquid sample preparation, single-shot mass spectrometry, an...

Mucus is secreted throughout the gastro-intestinal tract by a variety of specialised cells located in glands or in the surface epithelium. The prime func­ tion of the mucus layer is to protect the delicate underlying mucosa from dam­ age by potentially harmful agents in the lumen (such as digestive enzymes and bacteria) and by the mechanical forces associated with digestion and the pas­ sage of...

The highly motile human pathogen Helicobacter pylori lives deep in the gastric mucus layer. To identify which chemical gradient guides the bacteria within the mucus layer, combinations of luminal perfusion, dialysis, and ventilation were used to modify or invert transmucus gradients in anaesthetized Helicobacter-infected mice and Mongolian gerbils. Neither changes in lumen or arterial pH nor in...