Figure 3

Direct alcohol exposure decreased barrier function in alveolar epithelial cells co-cultured with macrophages. Primary alveolar type II epithelial cells and macrophages from control-fed rats were cultured with or without alcohol or anti-TGFβ1 Ab (1 μg/ml) for 6 days. The barrier function of epithelial monolayer was measured (A) by transepithelial resistance (TER) and (B) Texas Red dextran (10,000 MW) flux as described in the Methods. TER was measured 3 times per sample and averaged per sample and per group (N = 5). * p < 0.05 compared to co-culture without alcohol (second column). ** p < 0.05 compared to co-culture with alcohol but without anti-TGFβ1 Ab (third column). Inset in (A) shows round macrophages stained positive for TGFβ1 in a co-culture of epithelial monolayer (no staining) and macrophages (stained on top) without alcohol (a) and in the presence of alcohol (b).