TITLE: Ion and liquid transport across airway epithelium

SPEAKER: Dr. Fouad Azizi,

TIME: Thursday Nov. 15, 2001 at 4 PM

PLACE: George P. Williams, Jr. Lecture Hall, (Olin 101)

The presence of blood proteins and excess liquid in inflamed airways of the lungs may be secondary to a high hydrostatic pressure in the blood vessels. A first study examines how hydrostatic pressures of 5-20 cm H₂O affect hydraulic conductivity and macromolecular permeability of airway epithelium. We used a modified capacitance probes technique to measure directly transepithelial liquid movements; and the Ussing chambers technique to measure the permeation of macromolecules and estimate the effective diameter of the pores created by hydrostatic pressure. In a second study, we showed how increased transepithelial liquid movements could affect the Sodium transport across airway epithelium. These results have important clinical implications concerning the resolution of alveolar and small airway flooding in pulmonary edema, especially in asthmatic patients.