Secretoglobins (SCGBs) are cytokine-like small molecular weight secreted proteins with largely unknown biological functions. Three SCGB proteins, SCGB1A1, SCGB3A1, and SCGB3A2, are predominantly expressed in lung airways. To gain insight into the possible functional relationships among the SCGBs, their protein and mRNA expression patterns were examined in lungs during gestation and in adult mice, using Scgb3a1-null and Scgb3a2-null mice as negative controls, by immunohistochemistry and by qRT-PCR analysis, respectively. The three SCGBs exhibited unique spatiotemporal expression patterns during embryogenesis. The lack of Scgb3a1 or Scgb3a2 did not affect expression of the other Scgb genes as determined by mRNA measurements. Moreover, the lack of Scgb3a1 or Scgb3a2 did not affect development of the pulmonary neuroepithelial bodies during embryogenesis, while the lack of Scgb3a2 may have resulted in slightly fewer ciliated cells than in the wild-type. These results suggest that SCGB1A1, SCGB3A1, and SCGB3A2 each may possess its own unique biological function.

中文翻译：

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在小鼠气道上皮细胞中三种分泌珠蛋白蛋白SCGB1A1，SCGB3A1和SCGB3A2的时空表达。

分泌球蛋白（SCGB）是一种细胞因子样小分子量分泌蛋白，具有未知的生物学功能。三种SCGB蛋白SCGB1A1，SCGB3A1和SCGB3A2主要在肺气道中表达。为了深入了解SCGB之间可能的功能关系，使用Scgb3a1-null和Scgb3a2-null小鼠作为阴性对照，通过免疫组织化学和qRT-PCR分析了妊娠期肺和成年小鼠中它们的蛋白质和mRNA表达模式， 分别。这三个SCGBs在胚胎发生过程中表现出独特的时空表达模式。如通过mRNA测量所确定，缺少Scgb3a1或Scgb3a2不会影响其他Scgb基因的表达。此外，Scgb3a1或Scgb3a2的缺乏不会影响胚胎发生过程中肺神经上皮体的发育，而Scgb3a2的缺乏可能会导致纤毛细胞的数量比野生型少。这些结果表明，SCGB1A1，SCGB3A1和SCGB3A2可能各自具有自己独特的生物学功能。