Penn Rhinology Lab

Dynamic regulation of ciliary beat frequency and pathogenic ciliary alterations in disease states

Motile cilia line the airways and through organized beating are responsible for continuously clearing respiratory secretions toward the glottis. The rate at which cilia beat is dynamic and regulated by myriad factors, such as mucus viscosity and particulate debris. Thus, dynamic modulation of ciliary beat frequency is critical for maintaining clean airways. Our studies on the cellular processes governing the dynamic regulation of cilia beat frequency and the clinically relevant factors (infectious and inflammatory mediators) that disrupt this homeostatic process have demonstrated that inflammatory mediators associated with chronic rhinosinusitis disrupt the dynamic ciliary response, yielding an ineffective mucociliary clearance apparatus.