Gastrointestinal Research Group, Faculty of Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alta., Canada.
J Innate Immun. 2009;1(2):123-35. doi: 10.1159/000163037. Epub 2008 Oct 8.
Gastrointestinal mucins produced by goblet cells comprise the main structural components of the mucus layer. Mucins play a critical role in the maintenance of mucosal homeostasis and are responsible for the differential effector and regulatory responses against a plethora of microorganisms, including commensals and pathogens. In this review, we present a comprehensive overview on mucin biology, its properties, classification and gene assembly. We also consider the structure of the mucin gene, its proteins and its role in innate host defenses. We compare the various mucin secretagogues and the differential regulatory pathways involved in mucin biosynthesis and secretion during normal and diverse pathogenic conditions. Finally, we summarize the putative uncharted aspects of mucin-derived innate host defenses, whose exploration will help drug developers to identify factors that can strengthen mucosal integrity and will facilitate basic science research into curative treatments for gastrointestinal diseases.
杯状细胞产生的胃肠道黏液由主要结构成分的黏液层。黏蛋白在维持黏膜内稳态中起着关键作用，并负责对大量微生物（包括共生菌和病原体）产生差异化的效应器和调节反应。在这篇综述中，我们全面介绍了黏蛋白生物学、其特性、分类和基因组装。我们还考虑了黏蛋白基因、其蛋白质及其在天然宿主防御中的作用的结构。我们比较了各种黏蛋白分泌物，以及在正常和不同的致病条件下参与黏蛋白生物合成和分泌的不同调节途径。最后，我们总结了黏蛋白来源的天然宿主防御的一些假定的未知方面，对这些方面的探索将有助于药物开发者确定可以增强黏膜完整性的因素，并促进针对胃肠道疾病的治疗方法的基础科学研究。
