How does PCD affect the lungs?
Our bodies need oxygen to survive. The best way to get oxygen from the outside atmosphere is to breathe in large amounts of air through the nose and mouth into the lungs where it is absorbed into the blood stream and pumped, by the heart, throughout the body. Unfortunately, outside air also contains things we don’t want in our lungs, like pollutants, germs and dust. These unwanted particles are breathed in, as well. Sometimes these particles can be dangerous or cause disease, so the body has developed an elegant system for removing unwanted particles called mucociliary clearance. Mucociliary clearance consists of cilia in the right quantity, of the right length beating vigorously and in a set pattern in a fluid layer in the airways. This fluid layer is topped by mucus of a specific stickiness and amount that traps debris and pathogens. The ciliary activity underneath this sticky mucus moves it toward the mouth where it can be coughed or swallowed. Together, properly functioning cilia,
