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Updated: Aug 7, 2026

Surfactant Depletion Combined with Injurious Ventilation Results in a Reproducible Model of the Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome (ARDS)
Published on: April 7, 2021
Genetic disorders of surfactant homeostasis
1Division of Pulmonary Biology, MLC 7029, Department of Pediatrics, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center and the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, 3333 Burnet Avenue, Cincinnati, OH 45229-3039, USA. jeff.whitsett@cchmc.org
Abstract:
Pulmonary surfactant reduces surface tension at the air-liquid interface in the alveolus, thereby maintaining lung volumes during the respiratory cycle. In premature newborn infants, the lack of surfactant causes atelectasis and respiratory failure, characteristic of respiratory of distress syndrome. Surfactant is comprised of lipids and associated proteins that are required for surfactant function. Surfactant proteins B and C and a lamellar body associated transport protein, ABCA3 play critical roles in surfactant synthesis and function. Mutations in the genes encoding these proteins cause lethal respiratory distress in newborn infants. This review discusses the clinical and pathological findings associated with these inherited disorders of alveolar homeostasis.
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