scholarly journals miR-34a promotes fibrosis in aged lungs by inducing alveolarepithelial dysfunctions

2017 ◽  
Vol 312 (3) ◽  
pp. L415-L424 ◽  
Author(s):  
Huachun Cui ◽  
Jing Ge ◽  
Na Xie ◽  
Sami Banerjee ◽  
Yong Zhou ◽  
...  

Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis is a well-known age-related disease. However, much less recognized has been the aging associated pathogenesis of this disorder. As we and others previously showed that dysregulation of micro-RNAs (miRNAs) was an important mechanism involved in pulmonary fibrosis, the role of these molecules in this pathology in the aged population has not been investigated (Cushing L, Kuang PP, Qian J, Shao F, Wu J, Little F, Thannickal VJ, Cardoso WV, Lü J. Am J Respir Cell Mol Biol 45: 287–294, 2011; Liu G, Friggeri A, Yang Y, Milosevic J, Ding Q, Thannickal VJ, Kaminski N, Abraham E. J Exp Med 207: 1589–1597, 2010; Pandit KV, Corcoran D, Yousef H, Yarlagadda M, Tzouvelekis A, Gibson KF, Konishi K, Yousem SA, Singh M, Handley D, Richards T, Selman M, Watkins SC, Pardo A, Ben-Yehudah A, Bouros D, Eickelberg O, Ray P, Benos PV, Kaminski N. Am J Respir Crit Care Med 182: 220–229, 2010). In this study, by using a lung fibrosis model established in old mice, we found that ablation of miR-34a protected aged animals from developing experimental lung fibrosis. miR-34a was upregulated in lung epithelial cells, but not in lung fibroblasts of aged mice, and miR-34a expression was further increased in epithelial cells of the fibrotic lungs of these old animals. We found that miR-34a induced dysfunctions in alveolar epithelial cells (AECs), as evidenced by increased cellular senescence and apoptosis and mitochondrial aberrations. More importantly, these abnormalities were attenuated in AECs of the fibrotic lungs of aged miR-34a−/− mice. We found that miR-34a targeted Sirt1, a master anti-aging regulator, and two key cell cycle modulators, E2F3 and cyclin E2, in lung epithelial cells, and the repression of these targets was relieved in miR-34a-deficient AECs. In summary, our data suggest that elevated AEC miR-34a plays a critical role in the pathogenesis of pulmonary fibrosis in the aged population. Our study also indicates miR-34a to be a more precise miRNA target for treating this disease that overwhelmingly affects people of advanced age.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chin Chiahsuan ◽  
John Lee ◽  
Ranjith Ravichandran ◽  
Timothy Fleming ◽  
Stephen Wheatcroft ◽  
...  

AbstractAccumulation of senescent cells contributes to age related diseases including idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF). Insulin-like growth factor binding proteins (IGFBPs) are evolutionarily conserved proteins that play a vital role in many biological processes. Overall, little is known about the functions of IGFBP2 in the epigenetic regulation of cellular senescence and pulmonary fibrosis. Here, we show that Igfbp2 expression was significantly downregulated at both mRNA and protein levels in a low-dose bleomycin-induced pulmonary fibrosis model of aged mice. Using the reduced representation of bisulfite sequencing technique, we demonstrated Igfbp2 downregulation is attributed to DNA methylation of CpG islands in fibrotic lungs of aged mice. Furthermore, Igfbp2 siRNA knockdown increased both P53 and P21 protein levels in mouse lung epithelial cells exposed to hypoxia treatment. Lentiviral mediated expression of Igfb2 decreased P21 protein levels and significantly reduced beta galactosidase activity in mouse lung epithelial cells challenged with a senescent drug (atazanavir) and hypoxia treatments. Using the RT2 Profiler PCR Array, we found that P21, PAI-1, IRF-5 and IRF-7, important regulators of senescence pathway, were significantly downregulated specifically in type-II alveolar epithelial cells (AECs) of aged human-Igfbp2 transgenic mice after bleomycin challenge. Finally, transgenic expression of human-Igfbp2 in type-II AECs from aged bleomycin challenged mice significantly decreased senescent associated secretory phenotype factors and also reduced extracellular matrix markers compared to aged wild-type mice challenged with bleomycin injury. Collectively, these findings reveal that epigenetic repression of Igfbp2 promotes pulmonary fibrosis and that restoring IGFBP2 in fibrotic lungs could prove effective in IPF treatment.



2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Francesca Louise Longhorne ◽  
Holly N Wilkinson ◽  
Matthew J Hardman ◽  
Simon Hart

Background: Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) is a progressive, incurable scarring disease of the lungs with a prognosis worse than most cancers. Pathologically, IPF is characterised by upregulation of the pro-fibrotic cytokine transforming growth factor-β1 (TGF-β1), activation of fibroblasts, and deposition of collagen in the alveolar interstitium. Recent evidence has highlighted the role of senescent type 2 alveolar epithelial cells in the pathogenesis of IPF. In a clinical trial, a treatment regimen containing a corticosteroid drug accelerated pulmonary fibrosis leading to more hospitalizations and deaths, particularly in patients with telomere shortening which drives cellular senescence. Aim: To investigate the potential pro-fibrotic actions of corticosteroids on lung epithelial cells in vitro, including effects on cellular senescence and interactions with TGF-β1. Methods: The synthetic glucocorticoid dexamethasone (DEX) was incubated with A549 and BEAS-2B human lung epithelial cells in the presence or absence of TGF-β1. Cellular senescence was assessed by morphology, senescence-associated beta-galactosidase (SA β-Gal) expression, and qPCR for transcription of senescence-associated molecular markers. Conditioned media were screened for growth factors and cytokines and cultured with human lung fibroblasts. An IPF lung tissue RNA array dataset was re-analysed with a focus on senescence markers. Results: DEX induced senescence in lung epithelial cells associated with increased p21 (CDKN1A) expression independently of p16 (CDKN2A) or p53 (TP53). DEX amplified upregulation of the pro-fibrotic mediator serpin E1/plasminogen activator inhibitor-1 (PAI-1) in the presence of TGF-β1. The senescence-associated secretory phenotype from lung epithelial cells treated with DEX plus TGF-β1-treated contained increased concentrations of GM-CSF and IL-6 and when incubated with primary human lung fibroblasts there were trends to increased senescence and production of fibrosis markers. Upregulation of senescence markers was demonstrated by analysis of an IPF transcriptomic dataset. Discussion: DEX induces senescence in lung epithelial cell lines in vitro and interacts with TGF-β1 to amplify production of the pro-fibrotic mediator serpin E1 (PAI-1). This may be a mechanism by which corticosteroids promote pulmonary fibrosis in susceptible individuals. Serpin E1/PAI-1 is a potential druggable target in pulmonary fibrosis.



2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Demin Cheng ◽  
Qi Xu ◽  
Yue Wang ◽  
Guanru Li ◽  
Wenqing Sun ◽  
...  

Abstract Background: Silicosis is one of the most common occupational pulmonary fibrosis caused by respirable silica-based particle exposure, with no ideal drugs at present. Metformin, a commonly used biguanide antidiabetic agent, could activate AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) to exert its pharmacological action. Therefore, we sought to investigate the role of metformin in silica-induced lung fibrosis.Methods: The anti-fibrotic role of metformin was assessed in 50 mg/kg silica-induced lung fibrosis model. SiO2-stimulated lung epithelial cells/macrophages and TGF-β-induced differentiated lung fibroblasts were used for in vitro models.Results: At the concentration of 300 mg/kg in the mouse model, metformin significantly reduced lung inflammation and fibrosis in SiO2-instilled mice at the early and late fibrotic stages. Besides, metformin (range 2mM to 10mM) reversed SiO2-induced cell toxicity, oxidative stress, and epithelial-mesenchymal transition process in epithelial cells (A549 and HBE), inhibited inflammation response in macrophages (THP-1), and alleviated TGF-β1-stimulated fibroblast activation in lung fibroblasts (MRC-5) via an AMPK-dependent pathway.Conclusions: In this study, we identified that metformin might be a potential drug for silicosis treatment.



2021 ◽  
Vol 19 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Demin Cheng ◽  
Qi Xu ◽  
Yue Wang ◽  
Guanru Li ◽  
Wenqing Sun ◽  
...  

Abstract Background Silicosis is one of the most common occupational pulmonary fibrosis caused by respirable silica-based particle exposure, with no ideal drugs at present. Metformin, a commonly used biguanide antidiabetic agent, could activate AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) to exert its pharmacological action. Therefore, we sought to investigate the role of metformin in silica-induced lung fibrosis. Methods The anti-fibrotic role of metformin was assessed in 50 mg/kg silica-induced lung fibrosis model. Silicon dioxide (SiO2)-stimulated lung epithelial cells/macrophages and transforming growth factor-beta 1 (TGF-β1)-induced differentiated lung fibroblasts were used for in vitro models. Results At the concentration of 300 mg/kg in the mouse model, metformin significantly reduced lung inflammation and fibrosis in SiO2-instilled mice at the early and late fibrotic stages. Besides, metformin (range 2–10 mM) reversed SiO2-induced cell toxicity, oxidative stress, and epithelial-mesenchymal transition process in epithelial cells (A549 and HBE), inhibited inflammation response in macrophages (THP-1), and alleviated TGF-β1-stimulated fibroblast activation in lung fibroblasts (MRC-5) via an AMPK-dependent pathway. Conclusions In this study, we identified that metformin might be a potential drug for silicosis treatment.



Author(s):  
Alessandro Ianni ◽  
Michael Hofmann ◽  
Poonam Kumari ◽  
Shahriar Tarighi ◽  
Hamza M Al-Tamari ◽  
...  

Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) represents the most aggressive form of pulmonary fibrosis (PF) and is a highly debilitating disorder with a poorly understood etiology. The lung epithelium seems to play a critical role in the initiation and progression of the disease. A repeated injury of lung epithelial cells prompts type II alveolar cells to secrete pro-fibrotic cytokines, which induces differentiation of resident mesenchymal stem cells into myofibroblasts, thus promoting aberrant deposition of extracellular matrix (ECM) and formation of fibrotic lesions. Reactivation of developmental pathways such as the Wnt-β-catenin signaling cascade in lung epithelial cells plays a critical role in this process, but the underlying mechanisms are still enigmatic. Here, we demonstrate that the membrane-associated protein NUMB is required for pathological activation of β-catenin signaling in lung epithelial cells following bleomycin-induced injury. Importantly, depletion of Numb and Numblike reduces accumulation of fibrotic lesions, preserves lung functions, and increases survival rates after bleomycin treatment of mice. Mechanistically, we demonstrate that NUMB interacts with casein kinase 2 (CK2) and relies on CK2 to activate β-catenin signaling. We propose that pharmacological inhibition of NUMB signaling may represent an effective strategy for the development of novel therapeutic approaches against PF.



2021 ◽  
Vol 22 (11) ◽  
pp. 6146
Author(s):  
Dominik H. W. Leitz ◽  
Julia Duerr ◽  
Surafel Mulugeta ◽  
Ayça Seyhan Agircan ◽  
Stefan Zimmermann ◽  
...  

Recent studies found that expression of Nedd4‑2 is reduced in lung tissue from patients with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) and that the conditional deletion of Nedd4‑2 in lung epithelial cells causes IPF-like disease in adult mice via multiple defects, including dysregulation of the epithelial Na+ channel (ENaC), TGFβ signaling and the biosynthesis of surfactant protein-C proprotein (proSP-C). However, knowledge of the impact of congenital deletion of Nedd4‑2 on the lung phenotype remains limited. In this study, we therefore determined the effects of congenital deletion of Nedd4‑2 in the lung epithelial cells of neonatal doxycycline-induced triple transgenic Nedd4‑2fl/fl/CCSP‑rtTA2S‑M2/LC1 mice, with a focus on clinical phenotype, survival, lung morphology, inflammation markers in BAL, mucin expression, ENaC function and proSP‑C trafficking. We found that the congenital deletion of Nedd4‑2 caused a rapidly progressive lung disease in neonatal mice that shares key features with interstitial lung diseases in children (chILD), including hypoxemia, growth failure, sterile pneumonitis, fibrotic lung remodeling and high mortality. The congenital deletion of Nedd4‑2 in lung epithelial cells caused increased expression of Muc5b and mucus plugging of distal airways, increased ENaC activity and proSP-C mistrafficking. This model of congenital deletion of Nedd4‑2 may support studies of the pathogenesis and preclinical development of therapies for chILD.



2010 ◽  
Vol 79 (1) ◽  
pp. 75-87 ◽  
Author(s):  
Min Wu ◽  
Huang Huang ◽  
Weidong Zhang ◽  
Shibichakravarthy Kannan ◽  
Andrew Weaver ◽  
...  

ABSTRACTAlthough DNA repair proteins in bacteria are critical for pathogens' genome stability and for subverting the host defense, the role of host DNA repair proteins in response to bacterial infection is poorly defined. Here, we demonstrate, for the first time, that infection with the Gram-negative bacteriumPseudomonas aeruginosasignificantly altered the expression and enzymatic activity of 8-oxoguanine DNA glycosylase (OGG1) in lung epithelial cells. Downregulation of OGG1 by a small interfering RNA strategy resulted in severe DNA damage and cell death. In addition, acetylation of OGG1 is required for host responses to bacterial genotoxicity, as mutations of OGG1 acetylation sites increased Cockayne syndrome group B (CSB) protein expression. These results also indicate that CSB may be involved in DNA repair activity during infection. Furthermore, OGG1 knockout mice exhibited increased lung injury after infection withP. aeruginosa, as demonstrated by higher myeloperoxidase activity and lipid peroxidation. Together, our studies indicate thatP. aeruginosainfection induces significant DNA damage in host cells and that DNA repair proteins play a critical role in the host response toP. aeruginosainfection, serving as promising targets for the treatment of this condition and perhaps more broadly Gram-negative bacterial infections.



2020 ◽  
Vol 21 (16) ◽  
pp. 5595
Author(s):  
Paul Cheresh ◽  
Seok-Jo Kim ◽  
Long Shuang Huang ◽  
Satoshi Watanabe ◽  
Nikita Joshi ◽  
...  

Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) is a chronic disease for which novel approaches are urgently required. We reported increased sphingosine kinase 1 (SPHK1) in IPF lungs and that SPHK1 inhibition using genetic and pharmacologic approaches reduces murine bleomycin-induced pulmonary fibrosis. We determined whether PF543, a specific SPHK1 inhibitor post bleomycin or asbestos challenge mitigates lung fibrosis by reducing mitochondrial (mt) DNA damage and pro-fibrotic monocyte recruitment—both are implicated in the pathobiology of pulmonary fibrosis. Bleomycin (1.5 U/kg), crocidolite asbestos (100 µg/50 µL) or controls was intratracheally instilled in Wild-Type (C57Bl6) mice. PF543 (1 mg/kg) or vehicle was intraperitoneally injected once every two days from day 7−21 following bleomycin and day 14−21 or day 30−60 following asbestos. PF543 reduced bleomycin- and asbestos-induced pulmonary fibrosis at both time points as well as lung expression of profibrotic markers, lung mtDNA damage, and fibrogenic monocyte recruitment. In contrast to human lung fibroblasts, asbestos augmented lung epithelial cell (MLE) mtDNA damage and PF543 was protective. Post-exposure PF543 mitigates pulmonary fibrosis in part by reducing lung epithelial cell mtDNA damage and monocyte recruitment. We reason that SPHK1 signaling may be an innovative therapeutic target for managing patients with IPF and other forms of lung fibrosis.



2019 ◽  
Vol 133 (7) ◽  
pp. 789-804 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yunlong Lei ◽  
Kui Wang ◽  
Xuefeng Li ◽  
Yi Li ◽  
Xuping Feng ◽  
...  

Abstract Bleomycin, a widely used anti-cancer drug, may give rise to pulmonary fibrosis, a serious side effect which is associated with significant morbidity and mortality. Despite the intensive efforts, the precise pathogenic mechanisms of pulmonary fibrosis still remain to be clarified. Our previous study showed that bleomycin bound directly to annexin A2 (ANXA2, or p36), leading to development of pulmonary fibrosis by impeding transcription factor EB (TFEB)-induced autophagic flux. Here, we demonstrated that ANXA2 also played a critical role in bleomycin-induced inflammation, which represents another major cause of bleomycin-induced pulmonary fibrosis. We found that bleomycin could induce the cell surface translocation of ANXA2 in lung epithelial cells through exosomal secretion, associated with enhanced interaction between ANXA2 and p11. Knockdown of ANXA2 or blocking membrane ANXA2 mitigated bleomycin-induced activation of nuclear factor (NF)-κB pathway and production of pro-inflammatory cytokine IL-6 in lung epithelial cells. ANXA2-deficient (ANXA2−/−) mice treated with bleomycin exhibit reduced pulmonary fibrosis along with decreased cytokine production compared with bleomycin-challenged wild-type mice. Further, the surface ANXA2 inhibitor TM601 could ameliorate fibrotic and inflammatory response in bleomycin-treated mice. Taken together, our results indicated that, in addition to disturbing autophagic flux, ANXA2 can contribute to bleomycin-induced pulmonary fibrosis by mediating inflammatory response.



1998 ◽  
Vol 275 (5) ◽  
pp. L1013-L1017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bruce D. Uhal ◽  
Claudia Gidea ◽  
Raed Bargout ◽  
Antonio Bifero ◽  
Olivia Ibarra-Sunga ◽  
...  

The angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitor captopril has been shown to inhibit fibrogenesis in the lung, but the mechanisms underlying this action are unclear. Apoptosis of lung epithelial cells is believed to be involved in the pathogenesis of pulmonary fibrosis. For these reasons, we studied the effect of captopril on Fas-induced apoptosis in a human lung epithelial cell line. Monoclonal antibodies that activate the Fas receptor induced epithelial cell apoptosis as detected by chromatin condensation, nuclear fragmentation, DNA fragmentation, and increased activities of caspase-1 and -3. Apoptosis was not induced by isotype-matched nonimmune mouse immunoglobulins or nonactivating anti-Fas monoclonal antibodies. When applied simultaneously with anti-Fas antibodies, 50 ng/ml of captopril completely abrogated apoptotic indexes based on morphology, DNA fragmentation, and inducible caspase-1 activity and significantly decreased the inducible activity of caspase-3. Inhibition of apoptosis by captopril was concentration dependent, with an IC50 of 70 pg/ml. These data suggest that the inhibitory actions of captopril on pulmonary fibrosis may be related to prevention of lung epithelial cell apoptosis.



Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document