C K Matthew Heng, Ilona Darlyuk-Saadon, Wupeng Liao, Manju P Mohanam, Phyllis X L Gan, Nechama Gilad, Christabel C M Y Chan, Inbar Plaschkes, W S Fred Wong, David Engelberg
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引用次数: 0
Abstract
Chronic respiratory diseases such as asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) afflict millions of individuals globally and are significant sources of disease mortality. While the molecular mechanisms underlying such diseases are unclear, environmental and social factors, such as cigarette smoke and obesity, increase the risk of disease development. Yet not all smokers or obese individuals will develop chronic respiratory diseases. The MAPK p38α is abnormally active in such maladies, but its contribution, if any, to disease aetiology is unknown. To assess whether p38α activation per se in the lung could impose disease symptoms, we generated a transgenic mouse model allowing controllable expression of an intrinsically active variant, p38αD176A+F327S, specifically in lung alveolar type 2 (AT2) pneumocytes. Sustained expression of p38αD176A+F327S did not appear to induce obvious pathological outcomes or to exacerbate inflammatory outcomes in mice challenged with common respiratory disease triggers. However, mice expressing p38αD176A+F327S in AT2 cells and fed with a high-fat diet (HFD) exhibited increased numbers of airway eosinophils and lymphocytes, upregulated levels of pro-inflammatory cytokines and chemokines including interleukin-1β and eotaxin, as well as a reduction in levels of leptin and adiponectin within the lung. Neither HFD nor p38αD176A+F327S alone induced such outcomes. Perhaps in obese individuals with associated respiratory diseases, elevated p38α activity which happens to occur is the factor that promotes their development.
期刊介绍:
The Journal of Biological Chemistry welcomes high-quality science that seeks to elucidate the molecular and cellular basis of biological processes. Papers published in JBC can therefore fall under the umbrellas of not only biological chemistry, chemical biology, or biochemistry, but also allied disciplines such as biophysics, systems biology, RNA biology, immunology, microbiology, neurobiology, epigenetics, computational biology, ’omics, and many more. The outcome of our focus on papers that contribute novel and important mechanistic insights, rather than on a particular topic area, is that JBC is truly a melting pot for scientists across disciplines. In addition, JBC welcomes papers that describe methods that will help scientists push their biochemical inquiries forward and resources that will be of use to the research community.