Pulmonary Surfactant
Pulmonary Surfactant - Related Videos
09:34
Extraction and Characterization of Surfactants from Atmospheric Aerosols
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Cited by 26 •
2017
Methods are presented for the targeted extraction of surfactants present in atmospheric aerosols and the determination of their absolute concentrations and surface tension curves in water, including their Critical Micelle Concentration (CMC).
07:20
Lavage-induced Surfactant Depletion in Pigs As a Model of the Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome (ARDS)
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Cited by 21 •
2016
Repeated pulmonary lavages in anesthetized pigs induce lung injury resembling major aspects of human acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS). For this purpose the lungs are repeatedly lavaged with 0.9% saline at 37 °C. The goal of the protocol is a reproducible mitigation of gas exchange and hemodynamics for research in ARDS.
08:17
Murine Echocardiography of Left Atrium, Aorta, and Pulmonary Artery
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Cited by 8 •
2017
The following protocol describes the methodology for the acquisition and analysis of echocardiographic images used to obtain the Left Atrial Volume (LAV), Aorta (Ao) diameter, and Pulmonary Artery (PA) diameter in mice. This technique is a non-invasive, non-terminal procedure that allows assessment of the cardiopulmonary function.
10:28
Experimental Measurement of Settling Velocity of Spherical Particles in Unconfined and Confined Surfactant-based Shear Thinning Viscoelastic Fluids
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Cited by 15 •
2014
This paper demonstrates the experimental procedure to measure terminal settling velocities of spherical particles in surfactant-based shear thinning viscoelastic fluids. Fluids over a wide range of rheological properties are prepared and settling velocities are measured for a range of particle sizes in unbounded fluids and fluids between parallel walls.
06:59
Catheter-based Endovascular Angioplasty for Fibrosing Mediastinitis-associated Pulmonary Vein Stenosis
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2025
Pulmonary vein stenosis (PVS) is a life-threatening complication of fibrosing mediastinitis (FM), with a poor prognosis if not properly treated. Currently, catheter-based endovascular angioplasty is a promising therapeutic strategy for FM-associated PVS. This protocol primarily outlines a stepwise approach to the transcatheter procedure for FM-associated PVS.
FAQs
Pulmonary surfactant lowers the mechanical resistance created at the alveolar air-liquid interface. During inhalation, it spreads over that interface; during exhalation, it becomes compressed. This changing arrangement helps limit alveolar collapse between breaths and decreases the effort needed to inflate the lungs, linking molecular organization with whole-lung respiratory mechanics.
Its lipid and protein composition is important because activity depends not only on what is present, but also on how the mixture behaves at the air-liquid interface. Effective spreading during inhalation and compression during exhalation allow the lining to function across the breathing cycle. Changes in composition or activity can therefore alter respiratory mechanics and contribute to pulmonary disease.
Alveolar type II cells are the primary source of pulmonary surfactant, making their activity central to maintaining the material needed at the alveolar surface. This cellular origin also connects surfactant biology with lung development. Studying these cells and the surfactant they produce can help explain why insufficient surfactant is especially consequential in premature infants.
Insufficient surfactant weakens the alveolar surface system that normally supports repeated inflation and limits collapse. The resulting increase in mechanical difficulty can impair breathing and is associated with respiratory distress syndrome, particularly in premature infants. This relationship makes surfactant status an important biological factor when researchers examine neonatal respiratory problems.
Research on surfactant connects a biological lung feature with clinical outcomes. In neonates, its deficiency is relevant to respiratory distress syndrome and helps motivate the development of neonatal therapies. In broader pulmonary research, altered surfactant function can support investigations of disease, allowing studies to relate surfactant activity to respiratory performance and diagnosis.
Investigators can examine how changes in surfactant composition and activity affect respiratory mechanics, gas exchange, lung injury, and repair. This makes the topic useful beyond neonatal disease: it provides a framework for connecting alveolar surface behavior with normal lung function and with pulmonary disorders in which surfactant function is altered.