Dong Zhen, Yang Zhanquan, Wang Chengshuo
Department of Otorhinolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, China-Japan Union Hospital, Bethune Medical School of Jilin University, 126 Xiantai dajie, Changchun, Jilin 130033, China.
Am J Rhinol. 2005 May-Jun;19(3):236-9.
Epithelium of nasal mucosa is the first line of defense against invading pathogens. This study investigated the expression of Toll-like receptor (TLR) 2 and TLR4 in epithelial cells of nasal mucosa and understood the role of TLRs in the innate immunity of nasal mucosa.
Human nasal epithelial cells were obtained by scraping the middle one-third of inferior turbinates from 30 patients with chronic rhinosinusitis and 20 healthy adult volunteers. The epithelial cells are made into smears. In situ hybridization was performed for TLR2 and TLR4 messenger RNA (mRNA).
TLR2 and TLR4 mRNA were expressed in the nasal epithelial cells. The expression of the two genes was significantly higher in the chronic rhinosinusitis group than in the normal control (TLR2, t = 8.605, p < 0.0005; TLR4, t = 9.050, p < 0.0005).
This study is the first to establish the presence of both TLR2 and TLR4 mRNA on epithelial cells of nasal mucosa, and their expression can be up-regulated in infectious conditions. These results show that TLR2 and TLR4 may play a important role in local host defense of nasal mucosa.
鼻黏膜上皮是抵御入侵病原体的第一道防线。本研究调查了鼻黏膜上皮细胞中Toll样受体（TLR）2和TLR4的表达情况，并了解TLR在鼻黏膜固有免疫中的作用。
从30例慢性鼻窦炎患者和20名健康成年志愿者的下鼻甲中三分之一处刮取人鼻上皮细胞。将上皮细胞制成涂片。对TLR2和TLR4信使核糖核酸（mRNA）进行原位杂交。
TLR2和TLR4 mRNA在鼻上皮细胞中表达。这两个基因的表达在慢性鼻窦炎组显著高于正常对照组（TLR2，t = 8.605，p < 0.0005；TLR4，t = 9.050，p < 0.0005）。
本研究首次证实鼻黏膜上皮细胞中存在TLR2和TLR4 mRNA，且在感染情况下它们的表达可上调。这些结果表明TLR2和TLR4可能在鼻黏膜局部宿主防御中发挥重要作用。
