Delivery of a mucin domain enriched in cysteine residues strengthens the intestinal mucous barrier.

ABSTRACT: A weakening of the gut mucous barrier permits an increase in the access of intestinal luminal contents to the epithelial cells, which will trigger the inflammatory response. In inflammatory bowel diseases, there is an inappropriate and ongoing activation of the immune system, possibly because the intestinal mucus is less protective against the endogenous microflora. General strategies aimed at improving the protection of the intestinal epithelium are still missing. We generated a transgenic mouse that secreted a molecule consisting of 12 consecutive copies of a mucin domain into its intestinal mucus, which is believed to modify the mucus layer by establishing reversible interactions. We showed that the mucus gel was more robust and that mucin O-glycosylation was altered. Notably, the gut e

SUBMITTER: Gouyer V 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4431476 | biostudies-literature | 2015 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature