Background Respiratory Illnesses (RI) in Australia's Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander popula... more Background Respiratory Illnesses (RI) in Australia's Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander population are predominant causes of morbidity and mortality. To date, however, although more than half of Australia's Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples reside in urban regions₁, there have been no studies focusing on young Indigenous children with RI in an urban setting. Focusing on respiratory health in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children is important as RI in Indigenous children are common and serious. Nationally, diseases of the respiratory system, although ranked fourth as the cause of death in Indigenous infants, are the most common cause of preventable deaths (Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW) 2011). They are also the most common reason for presentation to general practitioners and the second leading cause of all self-reported ill-health in this population (AIHW 2011). Chronic respiratory disease is the second most common reason for hospitalisation among Indigenous Australians, after renal dialysis (Australian Health Ministers' Advisory Council, 2008). The incidence of non-Cystic Fibrosis bronchiectasis is excessive in remote area children (Chang, Grimwood, Mulholland & Torzillo 2002) and it is associated with repeated infections in early childhood (Valery, Torzillo, Mulholland, Boyce, Purdie & Chang 2004). Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander children bear a disproportionate burden of acute and chronic lower respiratory infections (O'
Lung surfactant is crucial for reducing the surface tension of alveolar space, thus preventing th... more Lung surfactant is crucial for reducing the surface tension of alveolar space, thus preventing the alveoli from collapse. Lung surfactant is synthesized in alveolar epithelial type II cells and stored in lamellar bodies before being released via the fusion of lamellar bodies with the apical plasma membrane. SNAREs (soluble N-ethylmaleimide-sensitive fusion protein-attachment protein receptors) play an essential role in membrane fusion. We have previously demonstrated the requirement of t-SNARE (target SNARE) proteins, syntaxin 2 and SNAP-23 (N-ethylmaleimide-sensitive factor-attachment protein 23), in regulated surfactant secretion. Here, we characterized the distribution of VAMPs (vesicle-associated membrane proteins) in rat lung and alveolar type II cells. VAMP-2,-3 and-8 are shown in type II cells at both mRNA and protein levels. VAMP-2 and-8 were enriched in LB (lamellar body) fraction. Immunochemistry studies indicated that VAMP-2 was co-localized with the LB marker protein, LB-180. Functionally, the cytoplasmic domain of VAMP-2, but not VAMP-8 inhibited surfactant secretion in type II cells. We suggest that VAMP-2 is the v-SNARE (vesicle SNARE) involved in regulated surfactant secretion.
Background Respiratory Illnesses (RI) in Australia's Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander popula... more Background Respiratory Illnesses (RI) in Australia's Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander population are predominant causes of morbidity and mortality. To date, however, although more than half of Australia's Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples reside in urban regions₁, there have been no studies focusing on young Indigenous children with RI in an urban setting. Focusing on respiratory health in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children is important as RI in Indigenous children are common and serious. Nationally, diseases of the respiratory system, although ranked fourth as the cause of death in Indigenous infants, are the most common cause of preventable deaths (Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW) 2011). They are also the most common reason for presentation to general practitioners and the second leading cause of all self-reported ill-health in this population (AIHW 2011). Chronic respiratory disease is the second most common reason for hospitalisation among Indigenous Australians, after renal dialysis (Australian Health Ministers' Advisory Council, 2008). The incidence of non-Cystic Fibrosis bronchiectasis is excessive in remote area children (Chang, Grimwood, Mulholland & Torzillo 2002) and it is associated with repeated infections in early childhood (Valery, Torzillo, Mulholland, Boyce, Purdie & Chang 2004). Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander children bear a disproportionate burden of acute and chronic lower respiratory infections (O'
Lung surfactant is crucial for reducing the surface tension of alveolar space, thus preventing th... more Lung surfactant is crucial for reducing the surface tension of alveolar space, thus preventing the alveoli from collapse. Lung surfactant is synthesized in alveolar epithelial type II cells and stored in lamellar bodies before being released via the fusion of lamellar bodies with the apical plasma membrane. SNAREs (soluble N-ethylmaleimide-sensitive fusion protein-attachment protein receptors) play an essential role in membrane fusion. We have previously demonstrated the requirement of t-SNARE (target SNARE) proteins, syntaxin 2 and SNAP-23 (N-ethylmaleimide-sensitive factor-attachment protein 23), in regulated surfactant secretion. Here, we characterized the distribution of VAMPs (vesicle-associated membrane proteins) in rat lung and alveolar type II cells. VAMP-2,-3 and-8 are shown in type II cells at both mRNA and protein levels. VAMP-2 and-8 were enriched in LB (lamellar body) fraction. Immunochemistry studies indicated that VAMP-2 was co-localized with the LB marker protein, LB-180. Functionally, the cytoplasmic domain of VAMP-2, but not VAMP-8 inhibited surfactant secretion in type II cells. We suggest that VAMP-2 is the v-SNARE (vesicle SNARE) involved in regulated surfactant secretion.
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Papers by Anna Bell