Airway secretions

Airway secretions refer to the heterogeneous mixture of mucus, water, proteins (notably mucins), cells, and cellular debris coating the airway surfaces. The mucus is primarily produced by secretory epithelial cells and submucosal glands, with the main gel-forming mucins being MUC5AC and MUC5B. These secretions play a central role in trapping inhaled particles and pathogens, facilitating their removal from the lungs via mucociliary clearance and cough. Normal secretion maintains airway hydration and defense, but overproduction or impaired clearance leads to pathological features in numerous pulmonary diseases, manifesting as airflow limitation, infection risk, and chronic cough. Therapy targets either the composition (e.g., DNAse to degrade DNA and reduce viscosity) or production of secretions (e.g., anti-inflammatories, bronchodilators), but "airway secretions" themselves are not a druggable molecular target, rather a complex physiological endpoint. "Airway secretions" describes a structural and physiological phenomenon, not a single specific molecular or drug target. Any therapeutic targeting involves modulating the underlying components (e.g., mucins, secretion pathways), not "airway secretions" per se. This entry is thus marked as "is_incorrect: true" for a canonical molecule/receptor.

Other names

Respiratory secretionsAirway mucusSputumPhlegm

Mechanism of action for drugs targeting airway secretions typically involves reduction of inflammation, degradation of DNA in mucus, decreasing viscosity, hydration of secretions, stimulation of ciliary clearance, and reduction of mucin production.