The alveolar epithelial glycocalyx

7 posts

In this project we aim to investigate the sugar-coating of the alveolar epithelial cells. This quite unknown glycocalyx of the lung may have a greater impact in the lung disease than expected, being at the border between the air and our lung tissue. At this very special location, we hypothesise that the glycocalyx may interact and play a key role on lung surfactant arrangement and function.

Comparative electron microscopic visualization of the lung alveolar epithelial glycocalyx with different staining and labeling methods

Vladimir Gluhovic, Sara Timm, Wolfgang M. Kuebler, Elena Lopez-Rodriguez, Matthias Ochs. Journal of Anatomy, 2024: 00, 1–12 To access the full article, click here: The alveolar surface of the lung is lined by an epithelium consisting of type I (AECI) and type II alveolar epithelial cells (AECII). This epithelium

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Multivalent, calcium-independent binding of surfactant protein A and D to sulfated glycosaminoglycans of the alveolar epithelial glycocalyx

SP-A and SP-D function has been related to innate immunity of the lung based on their binding to sugar residues at pathogen surfaces. Here, we demonstrated that these proteins bind to glycosaminoglycans present at typical cell surfaces like the alveolar epithelial glycocalyx.

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Characterization of commercially available human primary alveolar epithelial cells

In vitro lung research requires appropriate cell culture models that adequately mimic in vivo structure and function. Specifically, these cells are often restricted by terminally altered expression while lacking important alveolar epithelial characteristics.

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The unremarkable alveolar epithelial glycocalyx: a thorium dioxide-based electron microscopic comparison after heparinase or pneumolysin treatment

The present study provides quantitative data on the differential glycocalyx distribution on AEI and AEII based on cThO2 and demonstrates alveolar glycocalyx shedding in response to HEP or PLY resulting in a structural reduction in both glycosaminoglycan height and density.

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The ultrastructural heterogeneity of lung surfactant revealed by serial section electron tomography: insights into the 3-D architecture of human tubular myelin

Lettau, M., Timm, S., Dittmayer, C., Lopez-Rodriguez, E., Ochs, M.: Am J Physiol-Lung C. 2022;322(6):L873-81. To access the full article, click here: Weibel’s hypothetical three-dimensional (3-D) model in 1966 provided first ultrastructural details into tubular myelin (TM), a unique, complex surfactant subtype found in the hypophase

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Metabolic Glycoengineering Enables the Ultrastructural Visualization of Sialic Acids in the Glycocalyx of the Alveolar Epithelial Cell Line hAELVi

Brandt, R., Timm, S., Gorenflos López, J.L., Kwame Abledu, J., Kuebler, W.M., Hackenberger, C.P.R., Ochs, M., Lopez-Rodriguez, E.: Front Bioeng Biotech. 2021;8:614357. To access the full article, click here: The glycocalyx—a plethora of sugars forming a dense layer that covers the cell membrane—

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On Top of the Alveolar Epithelium: Surfactant and the Glycocalyx

Ochs, M., Hegermann, J., Lopez-Rodriguez, E., Timm, S., Nouailles, G., Matuszak, J., Simmons, S., Witzenrath, M., Kuebler, W.M.: Int J Mol Sci. 2020;21(9). To access the full article, click here: Gas exchange in the lung takes place via the air-blood barrier in the septal walls of alveoli.

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