Interfacial sensing by alveolar type II cells: a new concept in lung physiology?

ABSTRACT: Alveolar type II (AT II) cells are in close contact with an air-liquid interface (I(AL)). This contact may be of considerable physiological relevance; however, no data exist to provide a satisfying description of this specific microenvironment. This is mainly due to the experimental difficulty to manipulate and analyze cell-air contacts in a specific way. Therefore, we designed assays to quantify cell viability, Ca(2+) changes, and exocytosis in the course of interface contact and miniaturized I(AL) devices for direct, subcellular, and real-time analyses of cell-interface interactions by fluorescence microscopy or interferometry. The studies demonstrated that the sole presence of an I(AL) is not sensed by the cells. However, when AT II cells are forced into closer contact with it, they res

SUBMITTER: Ravasio A 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3118621 | biostudies-literature | 2011 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature