Researchers identify proteins that control mucous production, suggest clues to treating colon and airway diseases
Friday, February 1, 2019 - 09:30
in Health & Medicine
Cells produce mucins at a constant rate, and when exposed to an allergen or pathogen, they produce more mucin in a rapid burst. Both the constant and rapid mucin secretion is controlled by calcium. CRG researchers Gerard Cantero-Recasens and Vivek Malhotra wanted to understand how normal cells secrete mucins in the right quantity and quality, so they can design procedures to correct mucin secretion defects in diseases where either too much or too little mucin is produced, such as asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, Crohn's disease and colorectal cancer.