Abstract
Airway epithelial cell biology has been greatly advanced by studies of genetically defined and modified mice; however it is often difficult to isolate, manipulate, and assay epithelial cell-specific responses in vivo. In vitro proliferation and differentiation of mouse airway epithelial cells are made possible by a high-fidelity system for primary culture of mouse tracheal epithelial cells described in this chapter. Using this method, epithelial cells purified from mouse tracheas proliferate in growth factor-enriched medium. Subsequent culture in defined medium and the use of the air–liquid interface condition result in the development of well-differentiated epithelia composed of ciliated and non-ciliated cells with characteristics of native airways. Methods are also provided for manipulation of differentiation and analysis of differentiation and gene expression. These approaches allow the assessment of global responses and those of specific cell subpopulations within the airway epithelium.
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Acknowledgement
The authors thank Brody laboratory members for photomicrographs and review. This work was supported by awards from the National Institute of Health and the Children’s Discovery Institute of Saint Louis Children’s Hospital and Washington University.
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You, Y., Brody, S.L. (2012). Culture and Differentiation of Mouse Tracheal Epithelial Cells. In: Randell, S., Fulcher, M. (eds) Epithelial Cell Culture Protocols. Methods in Molecular Biology, vol 945. Humana Press, Totowa, NJ. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-62703-125-7_9
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-62703-125-7_9
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