High speed cinemicrographic studies on rabbit tracheal (ciliated) epithelia: cytolytic effect of cystic fibrosis serum on tracheal epithelial cells.

High speed cinemicrographs are made on the ciliary activity of rabbit tracheal cilia with the aid of Nomarski optics. The detailed nature of the ciliary beat pattern is determined from slow motion analysis of the high speed cinemicrographs (1-3). Such documented forms of ciliary beat pattern and the physiologic state of the tracheal epithelia are utilized as basic reference controls to investigate the physiologic effects of cystic fibrosis serum on ciliated epithelia and the cystic fibrosis tracheal mucus stagnation phenomenon. Careful analyses of the high speed cinemicrographs reveal that cystic fibrosis serum has no effect on the rhythm and beat pattern of rabbit tracheal cilia. However, it is shown in controlled procedures that cystic fibrosis serum has a cytolytic effect on the tracheal epithelial cells and also at the cell junctions. Ciliary dyskinesis, as described in previous reports (6-9), is actually a secondary effect of cytolysis and cell destruction.