132 Characterization of 2 Epithelial Cell Air-Liquid Interface (ALI) Culture Models for Human Healthy Nasal Mucosa and Nasal Polyps

Background Primary human airway epithelial cells, when submerged in culture, undergo a dedifferentiation with loss of many features of the in vivo airway epithelium. However, when cultured in an air-liquid interface (ALI), cells develop a well-differentiated, polarized, and pseudostratified epithelium. The aim of the current study was to characterize the mucociliary differentiation of human nasal mucosa and polyp epithelial cells cultured using an ALI system.