The ROCK signaling regulates the pulmonary vascular permeability via maintenance of lung homeostasis.

Rho-associated kinase (ROCK), including the ROCK1 and ROCK2 isoforms, is a protein kinase involved in signaling from Rho to actin cytoskeleton. Many studies on ROCK functions in cultured cells have been reported. However, functions of ROCK in vivo remain incompletely understood, because targeted disruption of the ROCK1 and ROCK2 genes leads to embryonic death. In this study, using a tamoxifen-induced Cre-loxP system, we deleted ROCK1 and ROCK2 in adult mice (ROCK double conditional knockout mice: ROCK DcKO) and explore the in vivo functions of ROCK.