Issue Archive

Progress of epithelial-mesenchymal transition in respiratory system and the modulatory mechanism of cell adhesion

TAN Mei-Ling, LONG Chun-Jiao, JIANG Wang, WANG Jin-Mei, PI Jiao, QIN Xiao-Qun, XIANG Yang^*

Department of Physiology, School of Basic Medical Science, Central South University, Changsha 410078, China

Abstract

Epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) plays an important role in the development and pathogenesis of respiratory system. Epithelial cells are characterized by well-developed, intercellular contacts, whereas EMT triggers the sequential destabilization of cell-cell adhesive junctions. The dynamic remodeling of the epithelial cell adhesion molecules is important for maintaining the integrity and normal function of epithelium. This paper reviews the research progress of EMT in lung development, lung injury repair and chronic lung diseases, and summarizes the effect of cell junctions and cell adhesion molecules on EMT molecular events.

Key words: epithelial-mesenchymal transition; lung; airway epithelium; cell junction; adhesion molecules

Received: 2019-10-24　　Accepted: 2020-03-19

Corresponding author: 向阳　　E-mail: xiangyang@csu.edu.cn

DOI: 10.13294/j.aps.2020.0043

Citing This Article：

TAN Mei-Ling, LONG Chun-Jiao, JIANG Wang, WANG Jin-Mei, PI Jiao, QIN Xiao-Qun, XIANG Yang. Progress of epithelial-mesenchymal transition in respiratory system and the modulatory mechanism of cell adhesion. Acta Physiol Sin 2020; 72 (5): 605-616 (in Chinese with English abstract).