Examining Airways

In order to develop improved treatments for respiratory diseases, more information is needed about the cells involved. Recently, the gene KIF7 has been shown to play a significant role in the function and cycle of cells in our lung airways. It’s important from the very beginning, ensuring that embryonic cells receive the information they need to develop correctly, communicating by ‘hedgehog signalling’ – named after another key gene called hedgehog. A faulty KIF7 gene can lead to various genetic respiratory disorders, such as asthma, or can be responsible for illnesses such as lung cancer later in life. Researchers are now studying KIF7 in greater detail. Pictured is a section of foetal lung with fluorescent tags, showing the expression pattern of KIF7 in green. Studying where KIF7 is in response to lung injury and regeneration is of particular interest as it might provide clues to a new therapeutic target for lung disease.

November is the UK's Lung Cancer Awareness month.

Written by Helen Thomas

Helen Thomas

Writer

Currently at Warwick University, Helen is working towards a chemistry doctorate in nanomaterials. However her scientific interests remain broad, and she enjoys exploring these different areas as a writer for the University paper.

• Image from work by Garry Coles, Laurel Baglia and Kate Ackerman
• University of Rochester Medical Center, New York, USA
• Originally published under a Creative Commons Licence (BY 4.0)
• Published in PLOS Genetics, October 2015