Hydrogel properties on airway surfaces in health and muco-obstructive lung disease (A01)

• Subject Area: Pneumology, Thoracic Surgery
• Term: since 2021
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 431232613

Airway mucus is a complex hydrogel, mainly formed by secreted mucins (MUC5B and MUC5AC), salt and water, that has important homeostatic functions essential for mucociliary clearance and lung health, and mucus dysfunction plays a key role in the pathogenesis of muco-obstructive lung diseases such as cystic fibrosis (CF). This interdisciplinary project will perform a comprehensive characterization of the viscoelastic and structural properties of airway mucus in health and disease to provide fundamental insights into the pathogenesis of mucus dysfunction as a knowledge base for future development of effective therapies for patients with CF and other muco-obstructive lung diseases.

• DFG Programme: Collaborative Research Centres
• Subproject of: SFB 1449: Dynamic Hydrogels at Biointerfaces
• Applicant Institution: Freie Universität Berlin
• Project Heads: Professor Dr. Michael Gradzielski; Professor Dr. Marcus Mall