Reduced three-dimensional motility in dehydrated airway mucus prevents neutrophil capture and killing bacteria on airway epithelial surfaces.

Cystic fibrosis (CF) lung disease is characterized by persistent lung infection. Thickened (concentrated) mucus in the CF lung impairs airway mucus clearance, which initiates bacterial infection. However, airways have other mechanisms to prevent bacterial infection, including neutrophil-mediated killing. Therefore, we examined whether neutrophil motility and bacterial capture and killing functions are impaired in thickened mucus. Mucus of three concentrations, representative of the range of normal (1.5 and 2.5% dry weight) and CF-like thickened (6.5%) mucus, was obtained from well-differentiated human bronchial epithelial cultures and prepared for three-dimensional studies of neutrophil migration. Neutrophil chemotaxis in the direction of gravity was optimal in 1.5% mucus, whereas 2.5% mucus best supported neutrophil chemotaxis against gravity. Lateral chemokinetic movement was fastest on airway epithelial surfaces covered with 1.5% mucus. In contrast, neutrophils exhibited little motility in any direction in thickened (6.5%) mucus. In in vivo models of airway mucus plugs, neutrophil migration was inhibited by thickened mucus (CF model) but not by normal concentrations of mucus ("normal" model). Paralleling the decreased neutrophil motility in thickened mucus, bacterial capture and killing capacity were decreased in CF-like thickened mucus. Similar results with each mucus concentration were obtained with mucus from CF cultures, indicating that inhibition of neutrophil functions was mucus concentration dependent not CF source dependent. We conclude that concentrated ("thick") mucus inhibits neutrophil migration and killing and is a key component in the failure of defense against chronic airways infection in CF.