研究人员表示，气道神经内分泌（NE）细胞被认为是一种特化的感觉上皮细胞，通过与附近的神经末梢沟通来调节呼吸行为。然而，它们在健康肺、气管和喉部中的功能特性和生理作用在很大程度上仍不为人所知。
研究人员发现这些区域的小鼠NE细胞具有不同的生物物理特性，但对水和酸这两种常见的有害刺激具有共同的敏感性。此外，研究人员还发现气管和喉NE细胞通过释放5′-三磷酸腺苷（ATP），来激活嘌呤感受神经元，从而启动吞咽和呼气反射，从而保护气道。
这项研究揭示了整个呼吸道NE细胞广泛的分子和生物物理多样性，并揭示了这些特化的可兴奋细胞，作为哨兵激活保护性反应的机制。
附：英文原文
Title: Neuroendocrine cells initiate protective upper airway reflexes
Author: Laura F. Seeholzer, David Julius
Issue&Volume: 2024-04-19
Abstract: Airway neuroendocrine (NE) cells have been proposed to serve as specialized sensory epithelial cells that modulate respiratory behavior by communicating with nearby nerve endings. However, their functional properties and physiological roles in the healthy lung, trachea, and larynx remain largely unknown. In this work, we show that murine NE cells in these compartments have distinct biophysical properties but share sensitivity to two commonly aspirated noxious stimuli, water and acid. Moreover, we found that tracheal and laryngeal NE cells protect the airways by releasing adenosine 5′-triphosphate (ATP) to activate purinoreceptive sensory neurons that initiate swallowing and expiratory reflexes. Our work uncovers the broad molecular and biophysical diversity of NE cells across the airways and reveals mechanisms by which these specialized excitable cells serve as sentinels for activating protective responses.
DOI: adh5483
Source: https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.adh5483