The extracellular secreted mucus and the cell surface glycocalyx prevent infection by the
vast numbers of microorganisms that live in the healthy gut. Mucin glycoproteins are the …

The mucus layer coating the gastrointestinal tract is the front line of innate host defense,
largely because of the secretory products of intestinal goblet cells. Goblet cells synthesize …

Mucins—large extracellular proteins that are heavily glycosylated with complex
oligosaccharides—establish a selective molecular barrier at the epithelial surface and …

The airways mucus gel performs a critical function in defending the respiratory tract against
pathogenic and environmental challenges. In normal physiology, the secreted mucins, in …

Secretion of bicarbonate into the adherent layer of mucus gel creates a pH gradient with a
near-neutral pH at the epithelial surfaces in stomach and duodenum, providing the first line …

Maintaining the integrity of the gastrointestinal tract, despite the continual presence of
microbial flora and injurious agents, is essential. Epithelial continuity depends on a family of …

Mucins are high-molecular weight epithelial glycoproteins with a high content of clustered
oligosaccharides O-glycosidically linked to tandem repeat peptides rich in threonine, serine …

Trefoil factor (TFF) peptides, with a 40-amino acid motif and including six conserved cysteine
residues that form intramolecular disulfide bonds, are a family of mucin-associated secretory …

Invasion causes cancer malignancy. We review recent data about cellular and molecular
mechanisms of invasion, focusing on cross-talk between the invaders and the host. Cancer …

[Frontiers in Bioscience 6, d1321-1357, October 1, 2001] 1321 MUCINS IN THE
GASTROINTESTINAL TRACT IN HEALTH AND DISEASE Anthony Page 1 [Frontiers in …