{"id":520,"date":"2018-01-27T18:05:18","date_gmt":"2018-01-28T01:05:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/communicatingscience2017w211\/?p=520"},"modified":"2018-02-26T13:35:35","modified_gmt":"2018-02-26T20:35:35","slug":"still-smoking-cigarettes-its-effects-on-cilia-just-might-make-you-quit","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.ubc.ca\/communicatingscience2017w211\/2018\/01\/27\/still-smoking-cigarettes-its-effects-on-cilia-just-might-make-you-quit\/","title":{"rendered":"Still smoking cigarettes? It’s effects on your cells just might make you quit."},"content":{"rendered":"

If you are a smoker, you have surely heard that smoking damages your lungs<\/a>. More surprisingly, without even killing the cells, the smoke does damage to the tiny hair-like extensions on the surface of your cells called cilia<\/a>.<\/p>\n

You may have known about the presence of cilia in the body, but why<\/em> is it important to keep them in good shape?<\/p>\n

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Photo by Louisa Howard, Wikipedia Commons.<\/p><\/div>\n

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Cilia are found in many parts of the body, notably the respiratory system. The cilia we find here are motile, which means they can move (non-motile cilia<\/a> also exist). They coat the nasal passageways all the way down to where the trachea (the windpipe) first branches off into the lungs as air passages called bronchi.<\/p>\n

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Created by Theresa Knott, GNU Free Documentation License.<\/p><\/div>\n

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The most crucial function they carry out in the respiratory system is to protect the passageways and to beat in a rhythmic manner to keep the airways clear of mucus and dirt. (See video below showing live beating of the cilia, from the Cilia Scientist<\/a>)<\/p>\n

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