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HERO ID
2664239
Reference Type
Journal Article
Subtype
Review
Title
Epithelial barrier function: At the front line of asthma immunology and allergic airway inflammation
Author(s)
Georas, SN; Rezaee, F
Year
2014
Is Peer Reviewed?
Yes
Journal
Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology
ISSN:
0091-6749
EISSN:
1097-6825
Volume
134
Issue
3
Page Numbers
509-520
Language
English
PMID
25085341
DOI
10.1016/j.jaci.2014.05.049
Web of Science Id
WOS:000341372400002
Abstract
Airway epithelial cells form a barrier to the outside world and are at the front line of mucosal immunity. Epithelial apical junctional complexes are multiprotein subunits that promote cell-cell adhesion and barrier integrity. Recent studies in the skin and gastrointestinal tract suggest that disruption of cell-cell junctions is required to initiate epithelial immune responses, but how this applies to mucosal immunity in the lung is not clear. Increasing evidence indicates that defective epithelial barrier function is a feature of airway inflammation in asthmatic patients. One challenge in this area is that barrier function and junctional integrity are difficult to study in the intact lung, but innovative approaches should provide new knowledge in this area in the near future. In this article we review the structure and function of epithelial apical junctional complexes, emphasizing how regulation of the epithelial barrier affects innate and adaptive immunity. We discuss why defective epithelial barrier function might be linked to T(H)2 polarization in asthmatic patients and propose a rheostat model of barrier dysfunction that implicates the size of inhaled allergen particles as an important factor influencing adaptive immunity.
Keywords
Airway epithelium; asthma; barrier defect; mucosal immunity; tight junction; adherens junction; innate immunity; allergy
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