IV. Paneth cell antimicrobial peptides and the biology of the mucosal barrier

The hypothesis that epithelial cells release preformed antibiotic peptides as components of mucosal innate immunity has gained experimental support in recent years. In the mammalian small intestine, Paneth cells secrete granules that are rich in alpha-defensins and additional antimicrobial peptides into the lumen of the crypt. The alpha-defensins are homologues of peptides that function as mediators of nonoxidative microbial cell killing in phagocytic leukocytes, and they are potent microbicidal agents in in vitro assays. Because certain mouse alpha-defensins stimulate cultured epithelial cells to secrete chloride ion, those peptides appear to be capable of interacting directly with the apical membranes of neighboring cells and perhaps influencing crypt physiology. In instances of crypt disruption or induced Paneth cell deficiency, crypt intermediate cells appear to compensate by accumulating and secreting Paneth cell antimicrobial peptides. Challenges for the future will be to understand the mechanisms of this epithelial plasticity and to show that Paneth cells contribute directly to innate immunity in the crypt microenvironment.