| Autor: |
Berg, Tove, Didon, Lukas, Nord, Magnus |
| Předmět: |
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| Zdroj: |
American Journal of Physiology: Lung Cellular & Molecular Physiology; Oct2006, Vol. 291, pL683-L693, 11p, 5 Color Photographs |
| Abstrakt: |
The lung develops from the endoderm through a process of branching morphogenesis. This process is highly active during the pseudoglandular stage of lung development and continues into the canalicular stage, resulting in the formation of terminal sacs. CCAAT/enhancer binding proteins (C/EBPs) are transcription factors regulating central aspects of differentiation and proliferation. We report here the developmental expression of C/EBPα, -β, and -δ in the lung. C/EBPα exhibits a dynamic expression pattern and is first detected during the late pseudoglandular stage. At this stage, expression is observed in a subset of epithelial cells in the distal parts of the branching tubules. The expression of C/EBPα is confined to nonproliferating cells. To examine the role of C/EBPα in lung development, we generated transgenic mice ectopically expressing C/EBPα in the lung epithelium using the human surfactant protein C promoter. Lungs from these mice were of normal size but exhibited a phenotype characterized by fewer and larger developing epithelial tubules, indicating that the branching process was affected. No effects on overall proliferation or cellular differentiation were observed. When this phenotype was compared with that of mice carrying a targeted mutation of the CEBPα gene, the Cehpa-/- mice exhibited a similar developmental pheno-type. In conclusion, our results show a role for C/EBPα in lung development and suggest a function in the later stages of lung branching morphogenesis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] |
| Databáze: |
Complementary Index |
| Externí odkaz: |
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