Revak S D, Merritt T A, Hallman M, Heldt G, La Polla R J, Hoey K, Houghten R A, Cochrane C G
Department of Immunology, Research Institute of Scripps Clinic, La Jolla, California 92037.
Pediatr Res. 1991 May;29(5):460-5. doi: 10.1203/00006450-199105010-00010.
Synthetic pulmonary surfactants consisting of mixtures of phospholipids with synthetic peptides based on the amino acid sequence of human surfactant apoprotein SP-B were prepared. These surfactants were analyzed for their ability to lower surface tension on a pulsating bubble surfactometer and for their capacity to improve lung compliance and increase alveolar expansion in a fetal rabbit model of surfactant deficiency. The data demonstrate that several peptides, ranging from 17 to 45 residues in length, matching the carboxy-terminal sequence of the SP-B protein, when appropriately recombined with the phospholipid dipalmitoylphosphatidylcholine and phosphatidylglycerol (3:1), are capable of producing a synthetic surfactant with biophysical and biologic activity approaching that of human surfactant derived from amniotic fluid.
