Mucus is a hydrogel that constitutes the first innate defense in all mammals. The main organic component of mucus, gel-forming mucins, forms a complex network through both reversible and irreversible interactions that drive mucus gel formation. Significant advances in the understanding of irreversible gel-forming mucins assembly have been made using recombinant protein approaches. However, little is known about the reversible interactions that may finely modulate mucus viscoelasticity, which can be characterized using rheology. This approach can be used to investigate both the nature of gel-forming mucins interactions and factors that influence hydrogel formation. This knowledge is directly relevant to the development of new drugs to modulate mucus viscoelasticity and to restore normal mucus functions in diseases such as in cystic fibrosis. The aim of the present review is to summarize the current knowledge about the relationship between the mucus protein matrix and its functions, with emphasis on mucus viscoelasticity.

粘液是一种水凝胶，构成所有哺乳动物的第一个先天防御。粘液的主要有机成分，即形成凝胶的粘蛋白，通过驱动粘液凝胶形成的可逆和不可逆相互作用而形成复杂的网络。使用重组蛋白方法已经在不可逆的凝胶形成粘蛋白组装的理解上取得了重大进展。但是，对于可精细调节粘液粘弹性的可逆相互作用了解甚少，可以使用流变学对其进行表征。该方法可用于研究形成凝胶的粘蛋白相互作用的性质以及影响水凝胶形成的因素。该知识与调节黏液粘弹性并恢复诸如囊性纤维化等疾病中正常黏液功能的新药的开发直接相关。