Secretion of cytokines by rat alveolar epithelial cells: possible regulatory role for SP-A

1994 ◽  
Vol 266 (2) ◽  
pp. L148-L155 ◽  
Author(s):  
H. Blau ◽  
S. Riklis ◽  
V. Kravtsov ◽  
M. Kalina

Cultured alveolar type II cells and pulmonary epithelial (PE) cells in long-term culture were found to secrete colony-stimulating factors (CSF) into the medium in similar fashion to alveolar macrophages. CSF activity was determined by using the in vitro assay for myeloid progenitor cells [colony-forming units in culture (CFU-C)]. Both lipopolisaccharide (LPS) and interleukin-1 alpha (IL-1 alpha) were found to upregulate the secretion 6.5- to 8-fold from alveolar type II cells and macrophages. However, no stimulatory effect of these factors was observed in PE cells that release CSF into the medium constitutively, possibly due to the conditions of long-term culture. The CSF activity was partially neutralized (70% inhibition) by antibodies against murine granulocyte/macrophage (GM)-CSF and IL-3, thus indicating the presence of both GM-CSF and IL-3-like factors in the CSF. However, the presence of other cytokines in the CSF is highly probable. Surfactant-associated protein A (SP-A), which is known to play a central role in surfactant homeostasis and function, was also found to upregulate secretion of CSF (at concentrations of 0.1-5 micrograms/ml) from alveolar type II cells and macrophages. Control cells such as rat peritoneal macrophages, alveolar fibroblasts, and 3T3/NIH cell line could not be elicited by SP-A to release CSF. The results are discussed in relation to the possible participation of the alveolar epithelial cells in various intercellular signaling networks. Our studies suggest that alveolar type II cells and SP-A may play an important regulatory role in the modulation of immune and inflammatory effector cells within the alveolar space.

2000 ◽  
Vol 279 (6) ◽  
pp. L1110-L1119 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ralf Wodopia ◽  
Hyun Soo Ko ◽  
Javiera Billian ◽  
Rudolf Wiesner ◽  
Peter Bärtsch ◽  
...  

Fluid reabsorption from alveolar space is driven by active Na reabsorption via epithelial Na channels (ENaCs) and Na-K-ATPase. Both are inhibited by hypoxia. Here we tested whether hypoxia decreases Na transport by decreasing the number of copies of transporters in alveolar epithelial cells and in lungs of hypoxic rats. Membrane fractions were prepared from A549 cells exposed to hypoxia (3% O2) as well as from whole lung tissue and alveolar type II cells from rats exposed to hypoxia. Transport proteins were measured by Western blot analysis. In A549 cells, α1- and β1-Na-K-ATPase, Na/K/2Cl cotransport, and ENaC proteins decreased during hypoxia. In whole lung tissue, α1-Na-K-ATPase and Na/K/2Cl cotransport decreased. α- and β-ENaC mRNAs also decreased in hypoxic lungs. Similar results were seen in alveolar type II cells from hypoxic rats. These results indicate a slow decrease in the amount of Na-transporting proteins in alveolar epithelial cells during exposure to hypoxia that also occurs in vivo in lungs from hypoxic animals. The reduced number of transporters might account for the decreased transport activity and impaired edema clearance in hypoxic lungs.


2007 ◽  
Vol 293 (1) ◽  
pp. L105-L113 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ashish K. Sharma ◽  
Lucas G. Fernandez ◽  
Alaa S. Awad ◽  
Irving L. Kron ◽  
Victor E. Laubach

Pulmonary ischemia-reperfusion (IR) injury entails acute activation of alveolar macrophages followed by neutrophil sequestration. Although proinflammatory cytokines and chemokines such as TNF-α and monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 (MCP-1) from macrophages are known to modulate acute IR injury, the contribution of alveolar epithelial cells to IR injury and their intercellular interactions with other cell types such as alveolar macrophages and neutrophils remain unclear. In this study, we tested the hypothesis that following IR, alveolar macrophage-produced TNF-α further induces alveolar epithelial cells to produce key chemokines that could then contribute to subsequent lung injury through the recruitment of neutrophils. Cultured RAW264.7 macrophages and MLE-12 alveolar epithelial cells were subjected to acute hypoxia-reoxygenation (H/R) as an in vitro model of pulmonary IR. H/R (3 h/1 h) significantly induced KC, MCP-1, macrophage inflammatory protein-2 (MIP-2), RANTES, and IL-6 (but not TNF-α) by MLE-12 cells, whereas H/R induced TNF-α, MCP-1, RANTES, MIP-1α, and MIP-2 (but not KC) by RAW264.7 cells. These results were confirmed using primary murine alveolar macrophages and primary alveolar type II cells. Importantly, using macrophage and epithelial coculture methods, the specific production of TNF-α by H/R-exposed RAW264.7 cells significantly induced proinflammatory cytokine/chemokine expression (KC, MCP-1, MIP-2, RANTES, and IL-6) by MLE-12 cells. Collectively, these results demonstrate that alveolar type II cells, in conjunction with alveolar macrophage-produced TNF-α, contribute to the initiation of acute pulmonary IR injury via a proinflammatory cascade. The release of key chemokines, such as KC and MIP-2, by activated type II cells may thus significantly contribute to neutrophil sequestration during IR injury.


2005 ◽  
Vol 289 (4) ◽  
pp. L521-L528 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vivian Y. Lee ◽  
Clara Schroedl ◽  
Joslyn K. Brunelle ◽  
Leonard J. Buccellato ◽  
Ozkan I. Akinci ◽  
...  

Exposure to bleomycin in rodents induces lung injury and fibrosis. Alveolar epithelial cell death has been hypothesized as an initiating mechanism underlying bleomycin-induced lung injury and fibrosis. In the present study we evaluated the contribution of mitochondrial and receptor-meditated death pathways in bleomycin-induced death of mouse alveolar epithelial cells (MLE-12 cells) and primary rat alveolar type II cells. Control MLE-12 cells and primary rat alveolar type II cells died after 48 h of exposure to bleomycin. Both MLE-12 cells and rat alveolar type II cells overexpressing Bcl-XLdid not undergo cell death in response to bleomycin. Dominant negative Fas-associating protein with a death domain failed to prevent bleomycin-induced cell death in MLE-12 cells. Caspase-8 inhibitor CrmA did not prevent bleomycin-induced cell death in primary rat alveolar type II cells. Furthermore, fibroblast cells deficient in Bax and Bak, but not Bid, were resistant to bleomycin-induced cell death. To determine whether the stress kinase JNK was an upstream regulator of Bax activation, MLE-12 cells were exposed to bleomycin in the presence of an adenovirus encoding a dominant negative JNK. Bleomycin-induced Bax activation was prevented by the expression of a dominant negative JNK in MLE-12 cells. Dominant negative JNK prevented cell death in MLE-12 cells and in primary rat alveolar type II cells exposed to bleomycin. These data indicate that bleomycin induces cell death through a JNK-dependent mitochondrial death pathway in alveolar epithelial cells.


2004 ◽  
Vol 287 (1) ◽  
pp. L104-L110 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xiaohui Fang ◽  
Yuanlin Song ◽  
Rachel Zemans ◽  
Jan Hirsch ◽  
Michael A. Matthay

Previous studies have used fluid-instilled lungs to measure net alveolar fluid transport in intact animal and human lungs. However, intact lung studies have two limitations: the contribution of different distal lung epithelial cells cannot be studied separately, and the surface area for fluid absorption can only be approximated. Therefore, we developed a method to measure net vectorial fluid transport in cultured rat alveolar type II cells using an air-liquid interface. The cells were seeded on 0.4-μm microporous inserts in a Transwell system. At 96 h, the transmembrane electrical resistance reached a peak level (1,530 ± 115 Ω·cm2) with morphological evidence of tight junctions. We measured net fluid transport by placing 150 μl of culture medium containing 0.5 μCi of 131I-albumin on the apical side of the polarized cells. Protein permeability across the cell monolayer, as measured by labeled albumin, was 1.17 ± 0.34% over 24 h. The change in concentration of 131I-albumin in the apical fluid was used to determine the net fluid transported across the monolayer over 12 and 24 h. The net basal fluid transport was 0.84 μl·cm−2·h−1. cAMP stimulation with forskolin and IBMX increased fluid transport by 96%. Amiloride inhibited both the basal and stimulated fluid transport. Ouabain inhibited basal fluid transport by 93%. The cultured cells retained alveolar type II-like features based on morphologic studies, including ultrastructural imaging. In conclusion, this novel in vitro system can be used to measure net vectorial fluid transport across cultured, polarized alveolar epithelial cells.


1995 ◽  
Vol 269 (1) ◽  
pp. L127-L135 ◽  
Author(s):  
W. W. Barton ◽  
S. Wilcoxen ◽  
P. J. Christensen ◽  
R. Paine

Intercellular adhesion molecule-1 (ICAM-1) is expressed at high levels on type I alveolar epithelial cells in the normal lung and is induced in vitro as type II cells spread in primary culture. In contrast, in most nonhematopoetic cells ICAM-1 expression is induced in response to inflammatory cytokines. We have formed the hypothesis that the signals that control ICAM-1 expression in alveolar epithelial cells are fundamentally different from those controlling expression in most other cells. To test this hypothesis, we have investigated the influence of inflammatory cytokines on ICAM-1 expression in isolated type II cells that have spread in culture and compared this response to that of rat pulmonary artery endothelial cells (RPAEC). ICAM-1 protein, determined both by a cell-based enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay and by Western blot analysis, and mRNA were minimally expressed in unstimulated RPAEC but were significantly induced in a time- and dose-dependent manner by treatment with tumor necrosis factor-alpha, interleukin-1 beta, or interferon-gamma. In contrast, these cytokines did not influence the constitutive high level ICAM-1 protein expression in alveolar epithelial cells and only minimally affected steady-state mRNA levels. ICAM-1 mRNA half-life, measured in the presence of actinomycin D, was relatively long at 7 h in alveolar epithelial cells and 4 h in RPAEC. The striking lack of response of ICAM-1 expression by alveolar epithelial cells to inflammatory cytokines is in contrast to virtually all other epithelial cells studied to date and supports the hypothesis that ICAM-1 expression by these cells is a function of cellular differentiation.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)


2019 ◽  
Vol 317 (2) ◽  
pp. L283-L294 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kelly A. Correll ◽  
Karen E. Edeen ◽  
Rachel L. Zemans ◽  
Elizabeth F. Redente ◽  
Karina A. Serban ◽  
...  

Epithelial-fibroblast interactions are thought to be very important in the adult lung in response to injury, but the specifics of these interactions are not well defined. We developed coculture systems to define the interactions of adult human alveolar epithelial cells with lung fibroblasts. Alveolar type II cells cultured on floating collagen gels reduced the expression of type 1 collagen (COL1A1) and α-smooth muscle actin (ACTA2) in fibroblasts. They also reduced fibroblast expression of hepatocyte growth factor (HGF), fibroblast growth factor 7 (FGF7, KGF), and FGF10. When type II cells were cultured at an air-liquid interface to maintain high levels of surfactant protein expression, this inhibitory activity was lost. When type II cells were cultured on collagen-coated tissue culture wells to reduce surfactant protein expression further and increase the expression of some type I cell markers, the epithelial cells suppressed transforming growth factor-β (TGF-β)-stimulated ACTA2 and connective tissue growth factor (CTGF) expression in lung fibroblasts. Our results suggest that transitional alveolar type II cells and likely type I cells but not fully differentiated type II cells inhibit matrix and growth factor expression in fibroblasts. These cells express markers of both type II cells and type I cells. This is probably a normal homeostatic mechanism to inhibit the fibrotic response in the resolution phase of wound healing. Defining how transitional type II cells convert activated fibroblasts into a quiescent state and inhibit the effects of TGF-β may provide another approach to limiting the development of fibrosis after alveolar injury.


1990 ◽  
Vol 38 (2) ◽  
pp. 233-244 ◽  
Author(s):  
D J Taatjes ◽  
L A Barcomb ◽  
K O Leslie ◽  
R B Low

We used post-embedding cytochemical techniques to investigate the lectin binding profiles of rat lung alveolar epithelial cells. Sections from rat lung embedded in the hydrophilic resin Lowicryl K4M were incubated either directly with a lectin-gold complex or with an unlabeled lectin followed by a specific glycoprotein-gold complex. The binding patterns of the five lectins used could be divided into three categories according to their reactivity with alveolar epithelial cells: (a) the Limax flavus lectin and Ricinus communis I lectin bound to both type I and type II cell plasma membranes; (b) the Helix pomatia lectin and Sambucus nigra L. lectin bound to type II but not type I cells; and (c) the Erythrina cristagalli lectin reacted with type I cells but was unreactive with type II cells. The specificity of staining was assessed by control experiments, including pre-absorption of the lectins with various oligosaccharides and enzymatic pre-treatment of sections with highly purified glycosidases to remove specific sugar residues. The results demonstrate that these lectins can be used to distinguish between type I and type II cells and would therefore be useful probes for investigating cell dynamics during lung development and remodeling.


2002 ◽  
Vol 282 (5) ◽  
pp. L1004-L1011 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nguyet M. Nguyen ◽  
Yushi Bai ◽  
Katsumi Mochitate ◽  
Robert M. Senior

Basement membranes have a critical role in alveolar structure and function. Alveolar type II cells make basement membrane constituents, including laminin, but relatively little is known about the production of basement membrane proteins by murine alveolar type II cells and a convenient system is not available to study basement membrane production by murine alveolar type II cells. To facilitate study of basement membrane production, with particular focus on laminin chains, we examined transformed murine distal respiratory epithelial cells (MLE-15), which have many structural and biochemical features of alveolar type II cells. We found that MLE-15 cells produce laminin-α5, a trace amount of laminin-α3, laminins-β1 and -γ1, type IV collagen, and perlecan. Transforming growth factor-β1 significantly induces expression of laminin-α1. When grown on a fibroblast-embedded collagen gel, MLE-15 cells assemble a basement membrane-like layer containing laminin-α5. These findings indicate that MLE-15 cells will be useful in modeling basement membrane production and assembly by alveolar type II cells.


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