The Effect and Mechanism of Hyaluronan on the Mucociliary Differentiation of Human Respiratory Epithelial Cells

The mucociliary system of nasal mucosa, which is composed of the ciliated respiratory epithelium, the mucous blanket, and the mucus-producing glands, is an important defense component of the respiratory system. Therefore, it is important to maintain intact inner respiratory mucociliary epithelium in reconstruction of large respiratory defect and in the development of tissue engineering trachea. Hyaluronan derivatives, which are biodegradable and non-immunogenic, have already proved to be effective as a scaffold for chondrocytes. However, the feasibility of use as a scaffold for respiratory epithelial cells remained unexplored. The aim of the study is to investigate the effect of hyaluronan including concentrations and molecular weight on the mucociliary differentiation of human respiratory epithelial cells (HREC). If hyaluronan is able to promote mucociliary differentiation of HREC, the investigators can synthesize hyaluronan derivatives serving as ideal biomaterials for respiratory tissue engineering and tissue-engineered trachea in the future.