Actin filaments mediate DNA fiber formation in chronic inflammatory airway disease

Purulent sputum from patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease has long been known to contain large DNA-rich fibers believed to impede airway drainage. We present a novel approach to study sputum structure using fluorescence microscopy to confirm the presence of large DNA-rich fibers and visualize for the first time filamentous actin in all sputum samples examined from patients with cystic fibrosis and chronic bronchitis. Both actin and DNA co-localize in the filaments previously identified as DNA alone. Treatment of sputum samples with recombinant human DNase I or the actin-filament-severing protein, gelsolin, both previously found to decrease viscosity, dissolves the sputum fiber bundles. Purified human DNA does not form large fibers alone in vitro but does so in the presence of filamentous actin, and these fiber bundles dissolve when treated with either gelsolin or DNase I. These findings implicate actin-DNA interactions in the pathogenesis of airway disease and identify both polymers as targets for therapy.