Fig. 2.

Wire myograph study using isolated murine tracheal rings and isolated human tracheal airway smooth muscle. A: after 3 sets of contractions induced by cumulative concentrations of acetylcholine (Ach), mouse tracheal rings were washed and contracted with an EC₅₀ concentration of Ach another 3 times. The 4th Ach EC₅₀-induced contraction after gelsolin or control peptides was compared with the Ach EC₅₀-induced contraction before the peptides. Representative wire myograph tracings are shown. B: gelsolin peptide-treated mouse tracheal rings contracted significantly less than water control- or control peptide-treated rings (n = 4 for water control or control peptide; n = 8 for gelsolin peptide; *P < 0.05, **P < 0.01, ANOVA with Bonferroni comparison). C: after 3 sets of contractions induced by cumulative concentrations of Ach, the human tracheal muscle strips were washed and contracted with an EC₅₀ concentration of Ach. The magnitude of the following Ach EC₅₀ contraction after peptide was compared with the previous Ach EC₅₀ contraction before peptide treatment. Representative myograph tracings are shown. D: gelsolin peptide-treated human tracheal muscle strips also contracted significantly less than control peptide-treated rings (n = 13 paired tracheal airway smooth muscle strips from 7 organ donors; **P < 0.01, Wilcoxon signed rank test).