Clara cell secretory protein (CCSP) is a product of nonciliated cells of the conducting airway epithelium. The normal physiological function of CCSP is unknown. However, the ability of CCSP to bind small lipophilic molecules, such as steroid hormones and certain pollutants, has led to speculation that this protein may mediate the biological accumulation of potentially harmful polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) metabolites within the lung. To investigate the contribution of CCSP in the in vivo accumulation of methylsulfonyl-PCB, a line of mice was established that were homozygous for a null allele of the CCSP gene. CCSP-deficient mice were healthy and fertile, with no gross physiological or pathological abnormalities Parenteral challenge with the PCB metabolite 4-methylsulfonyl-2,2',4',5,5'-pentachlorobiphenyl (MeSO2-PCB) demonstrated that CCSP-deficient mice no longer accumulate this class of pollutants within lung and kidney tissues. These data demonstrate that CCSP is the determinant for MeSO2-PCB accumulation within mice and support the notion that bioconcentration of MeSO2-PCB pollutants occurs at sites of CCSP localization, such as the respiratory and reproductive tracts of humans.
Motile cilia are hair like structures that line respiratory and reproductive tract, and middle ear, and generate fluid flow in these organs via synchronized beating. Cilium growth is a highly regulated process that is assumed to be important for flow generation. Recently, Kif19a, a kinesin residing at the cilia tip, was identified to be essential for ciliary length control through its microtubule depolymerization function. However, there is lack of information on the nature of proteins and the integrated signaling mechanism regulating growth of motile cilia. Here, we report that adenylate cyclase 6 (AC6), a highly abundant AC isoform in airway epithelial cells, inhibits degradation of Kif19a by inhibiting autophagy, a cellular recycling mechanism for damaged proteins and organelles. Using epithelium specific knockout mice of AC6, we demonstrated that AC6 knockout (KO) airway epithelial cells have longer cilia compared to the wild-type cells due to decreased Kif19a protein levels in the cilia. We demonstrated in vitro that AC6 inhibits AMP-activated kinase (AMPK), an important modulator of cellular energy conserving mechanisms, and uncouples its binding with ciliary kinesin Kif19a. In the absence of AC6, activation of AMPK mobilizes Kif19a into autophagosomes for degradation in airway epithelial cells. Lower Kif19a levels upon pharmacological activation of AMPK in airway epithelial cells correlated with elongated cilia and vice versa. In all, AC6-AMPK pathway, that is tunable to cellular cues could potentially serve as one of the crucial ciliary growth checkpoints, and could be channeled to develop therapeutic interventions for cilia-associated disorders.
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