Hormonal modulation of lung Na transport

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The cells which line the interior surface of the lung possess molecular pumps and channels which together provide a mechanism for driving fluid movement across the walls of the lung. Their normal functioning is crucial before, during and after birth. Thus, before birth, the secretion of fluid into the lung generates a liquid template around which the developing airspaces grow. At birth, this fluid must be absorbed if the newborn baby is to breathe normally. However, from birth through childhood into adult life, the interior of the lung, although air-filled, is lined by a thin film of liquid - the volume and composition of which is very precisely regulated by adrenaline (the rapid acting ?flight or fight? hormone), long acting hormones such as thyroid and steroid hormones. Disrupting these regulating mechanisms underlies a number of serious lung disorders, including respiratory distress of the newborn, pulmonary oedema (e.g. altitude sickness) and cystic fibrosis. The work described in this application will define the ways in which the molecular channels involved in fluid absorption are controlled in order to keep the lungs dry and thus allow lung function to be maintained.