Choi Wangsun, Yeruva Sunil, Turner Jerrold R
Departments of Pathology and Medicine (Division of Gastroenterology, Hepatology, and Endoscopy), Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA.
Departments of Pathology and Medicine (Division of Gastroenterology, Hepatology, and Endoscopy), Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA.
Exp Cell Res. 2017 Sep 1;358(1):71-77. doi: 10.1016/j.yexcr.2017.03.036. Epub 2017 Mar 23.
A core function of epithelia is to form barriers that separate tissue compartments within complex organisms. These barriers also separate the internal milieu from the external environment and are, therefore, an essential component of host defense. However, in many cases, a perfect barrier would be improbable with life itself. Examples include the air spaces within the lungs, the renal tubules, and the intestines. Here, we focus on the mechanisms by which barriers are assembled, maintained, and regulated in the context of health and disease. Because of its unique challenges and extensive study, we focus on the gastrointestinal tract as an organ-specific example of the essential contributions of the paracellular barrier to life.
上皮细胞的一个核心功能是形成屏障，将复杂生物体中的组织隔室分隔开来。这些屏障还将内部环境与外部环境分隔开，因此是宿主防御的重要组成部分。然而，在许多情况下，完美的屏障与生命本身是不可能共存的。例子包括肺内的气腔、肾小管和肠道。在这里，我们关注屏障在健康和疾病背景下组装、维持和调节的机制。由于其独特的挑战和广泛的研究，我们将胃肠道作为细胞旁屏障对生命做出重要贡献的一个器官特异性例子进行重点研究。
