Lung oedema: Molecular mechanisms of development
Research report (imported) 2010 - Max Planck Institute for Heart and Lung Research - W. G. Kerckhoff Institute
Summary
Impair fluid balance in the lung is a key characteristic of acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS), a life-threatening syndrome frequently encountered in an intensive care setting. The molecular processes underlying impaired fluid clearance are not understood. Recently, the peptide hormone transforming growth factor (TGF)-β has been implicated as a regulator of lung fluid balance, modulating the activity of both components of a two-component Na+ transport mechanism of the alveolar epithelium involving the epithelial sodium channel (ENaC) and the Na+/K+-ATPase, a sodium/potassium ion pump.