Cystic fibrosis makes airways more acidic, reduces bacterial killing

Using a unique animal model of cystic fibrosis, a team of scientists from the University of Iowa has discovered a difference between healthy airways and airways affected by cystic fibrosis that leads to reduced bacterial killing in cystic fibrosis airways. The finding directly links the genetic cause of cystic fibrosis – mutations in a channel protein called cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator – to the disruption of a biological mechanism that protects lungs from bacterial infection.