title: Immunohistochemical demonstration of airway epithelial cell markers of guinea pig.
abstract: The guinea pig (Cavea porcellus) is a mammalian non-rodent species in the Caviidae family. The sensitivity of the respiratory system and the susceptibility to infectious diseases allows the guinea pig to be a useful model for both infectious and non-infectious lung diseases such as asthma and tuberculosis. In this report, we demonstrated for the first time, the major cell types and composition in the guinea pig airway epithelium, using cell type-specific markers by immunohistochemical staining using the commercial available immunological reagents that cross-react with guinea pig. Our results revealed the availability of antibodies cross-reacting with airway epithelial cell types of basal, non-ciliated columnar, ciliated, Clara, goblet and alveolar type II cells, as well as those cells expressing Mucin 5AC, Mucin 2, Aquaporin 4 and Calcitonin Gene Related Peptide. The distribution of these various cell types were quantified in the guinea pig airway by immunohistochemical staining and were comparable with morphometric studies using an electron microscopy assay. Moreover, this study also demonstrated that goblet cells are the main secretory cell type in the guinea pig's airway, distinguishing this species from rats and mice. These results provide useful information for the understanding of airway epithelial cell biology and mechanisms of epithelial-immune integration in guinea pig models.
authors.affiliation: Key Laboratory of Ministry of Education for Conservation and Utilization of Special Biological Resources of Western China, Yinchuan, Ningxia 750021, China.
authors.forename: Yong
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Li
authors.forename: Jing
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: Hai Yan
authors.initials: HY
authors.lastname: He
authors.forename: Ling Jie
authors.initials: LJ
authors.lastname: Ma
authors.forename: Jin
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Zeng
authors.forename: Guang Cun
authors.initials: GC
authors.lastname: Deng
authors.forename: Xiaoming
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.forename: John F
authors.initials: JF
authors.lastname: Engelhardt
authors.forename: Yujiong
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Wang
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000906:Antibodies / Q000276:immunology / Q000378:metabolism*; D051401:Aquaporin 4 / Q000276:immunology / Q000378:metabolism; D015415:Biomarkers / Q000032:analysis / Q000378:metabolism; D015740:Calcitonin Gene-Related Peptide / Q000276:immunology / Q000378:metabolism; D002452:Cell Count; D002923:Cilia / Q000378:metabolism; D003429:Cross Reactions; D004847:Epithelial Cells / Q000276:immunology* / Q000378:metabolism / Q000648:ultrastructure; D005260:Female; D020397:Goblet Cells / Q000378:metabolism; D006168:Guinea Pigs; D007150:Immunohistochemistry; D008168:Lung / Q000033:anatomy & histology; D008297:Male; D051379:Mice; D008854:Microscopy, Electron; D055271:Mucin 5AC / Q000276:immunology / Q000378:metabolism; D055262:Mucin-2 / Q000276:immunology / Q000378:metabolism; D013045:Species Specificity; D014132:Trachea / Q000276:immunology / Q000378:metabolism / Q000648:ultrastructure*; D014598:Uteroglobin / Q000276:immunology / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D000906:Antibodies; D051401:Aquaporin 4; D015415:Biomarkers; D055271:Mucin 5AC; D055262:Mucin-2; D014598:Uteroglobin; D015740:Calcitonin Gene-Related Peptide