Urokinase Plasminogen Activator Overexpression Reverses Established Lung Fibrosis

Georg Thieme Verlag KG Stuttgart · New York..

INTRODUCTION:  Impaired plasminogen activation (PA) is causally related to the development of lung fibrosis. Prior studies demonstrate that enhanced PA in the lung limits the severity of scarring following injury and in vitro studies indicate that PA promotes matrix degradation and fibroblast apoptosis. These findings led us to hypothesize that increased PA in an in vivo model would enhance the resolution of established lung fibrosis in conjunction with increased myofibroblast apoptosis.

METHODS:  Transgenic C57BL/6 mice with doxycycline inducible lung-specific urokinase plasminogen activator (uPA) expression or littermate controls were treated (day 0) with bleomycin or saline. Doxycycline was initiated on days 1, 9, 14, or 21. Lung fibrosis, stiffness, apoptosis, epithelial barrier integrity, and inflammation were assessed.

RESULTS:  Protection from fibrosis with uPA upregulation from day 1 through day 28 was associated with reduced parenchymal stiffness as determined by atomic force microscopy. Initiation of uPA expression beginning in the late inflammatory or the early fibrotic phase reduced stiffness and fibrosis at day 28. Induction of uPA activity in mice with established fibrosis decreased lung collagen and lung stiffness while increasing myofibroblast apoptosis. Upregulation of uPA did not alter lung inflammation but was associated with improved epithelial cell homeostasis.

CONCLUSION:  Restoring intrapulmonary PA activity diminishes lung fibrogenesis and enhances the resolution of established lung fibrosis. This PA-mediated resolution is associated with increased myofibroblast apoptosis and improved epithelial cell homeostasis. These studies support the potential capacity of the lung to resolve existing scar in murine models.

Medienart:

E-Artikel

Erscheinungsjahr:

2019

Erschienen:

2019

Enthalten in:

Zur Gesamtaufnahme - volume:119

Enthalten in:

Thrombosis and haemostasis - 119(2019), 12 vom: 08. Dez., Seite 1968-1980

Sprache:

Englisch

Beteiligte Personen:

Horowitz, Jeffrey C [VerfasserIn]
Tschumperlin, Daniel J [VerfasserIn]
Kim, Kevin K [VerfasserIn]
Osterholzer, John J [VerfasserIn]
Subbotina, Natalya [VerfasserIn]
Ajayi, Iyabode O [VerfasserIn]
Teitz-Tennenbaum, Seagal [VerfasserIn]
Virk, Ammara [VerfasserIn]
Dotson, Megan [VerfasserIn]
Liu, Fei [VerfasserIn]
Sicard, Delphine [VerfasserIn]
Jia, Shijing [VerfasserIn]
Sisson, Thomas H [VerfasserIn]

Links:

Volltext

Themen:

11056-06-7
9007-34-5
Bleomycin
Collagen
Doxycycline
EC 3.4.21.73
Hydroxyproline
Journal Article
N12000U13O
RMB44WO89X
Urokinase-Type Plasminogen Activator

Anmerkungen:

Date Completed 09.07.2020

Date Revised 10.11.2020

published: Print-Electronic

Citation Status MEDLINE

doi:

10.1055/s-0039-1697953

funding:

Förderinstitution / Projekttitel:

PPN (Katalog-ID):

NLM30309303X