Smoking-induced Disarray of the Apical Junctional Complex Gene Expression Architecture in the Human Airway Epithelium

ABSTRACT: The apical junctional complex (AJC), composed of tight junctions and adherens junctions, is essential for maintaining epithelial barrier function. Since cigarette smoking and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), the major smoking-induced disease, are both associated with increased lung epithelial permeability, we hypothesized that smoking alters the transcriptional program regulating AJC integrity in the small airway epithelium (SAE), the primary site of pathological changes in COPD. Transcriptome analysis revealed a global down-regulation of physiological AJC gene expression in the SAE of healthy smokers (n=53) compared to healthy nonsmokers (n=59), an observation associated with changes in molecular pathways regulating epithelial differentiation such as PTEN signaling and accomp

ORGANISM(S): Homo sapiens

SUBMITTER: Yael Strulovici-Barel 

PROVIDER: E-GEOD-20257 | biostudies-arrayexpress |

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-arrayexpress