Dataset Information

Inhibition of integrin alpha(v)beta6, an activator of latent transforming growth factor-beta, prevents radiation-induced lung fibrosis.

ABSTRACT:

Rationale

In experimental models, lung fibrosis is dependent on transforming growth factor (TGF)-beta signaling. TGF-beta is secreted in a latent complex with its propeptide, and TGF-beta activators release TGF-beta from this complex. Because the integrin alpha(v)beta6 is a major TGF-beta activator in the lung, inhibition of alpha(v)beta6-mediated TGF-beta activation is a logical strategy to treat lung fibrosis.

Objectives

To determine, by genetic and pharmacologic approaches, whether murine radiation-induced lung fibrosis is dependent on alpha(v)beta6.

Methods

Wild-type mice, alpha(v)beta6-deficient (Itgb6-/-) mice, and mice heterozygous for a Tgfb1 mutation that eliminates integrin-mediated activation (Tgfb1(+/RGE)) were exposed to 14 Gy thoracic radiation. Some mice were treated with an anti-alpha(v)beta6 monoclonal antibody or a soluble TGF-beta receptor fusion protein. Alpha(v)beta6 expression was determined by immunohistochemistry. Fibrosis, inflammation, and gene expression patterns were assessed 20-32 weeks postirradiation.

Measurements and main results

Beta6 integrin expression increased within the alveolar epithelium 18 weeks postirradiation, just before onset of fibrosis. Itgb6-/- mice were completely protected from fibrosis, but not from late radiation-induced mortality. Anti-alpha(v)beta6 therapy (1-10 mg/kg/wk) prevented fibrosis, but only higher doses (6-10 mg/kg/wk) caused lung inflammation similar to that in Itgb6-/- mice. Tgfb1-haploinsufficient mice were also protected from fibrosis.

Conclusions

Alpha(v)beta6-mediated TGF-beta activation is required for radiation-induced lung fibrosis. Together with previous data, our results demonstrate a robust requirement for alpha(v)beta6 in distinct fibrosis models. Inhibition of alphavbeta6-mediated TGF-beta activation is a promising new approach for antifibrosis therapy.

SUBMITTER: Puthawala K

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2176115 | biostudies-literature | 2008 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Publications

Inhibition of integrin alpha(v)beta6, an activator of latent transforming growth factor-beta, prevents radiation-induced lung fibrosis.

Puthawala Khalid K Hadjiangelis Nicos N Jacoby Steven C SC Bayongan Emmanuel E Zhao Zhicheng Z Yang Zhiwei Z Devitt Mary Louise ML Horan Gerald S GS Weinreb Paul H PH Lukashev Matvey E ME Violette Shelia M SM Grant Kristen S KS Colarossi Cristina C Formenti Silvia C SC Munger John S JS

American journal of respiratory and critical care medicine 20071004 1

<h4>Rationale</h4>In experimental models, lung fibrosis is dependent on transforming growth factor (TGF)-beta signaling. TGF-beta is secreted in a latent complex with its propeptide, and TGF-beta activators release TGF-beta from this complex. Because the integrin alpha(v)beta6 is a major TGF-beta activator in the lung, inhibition of alpha(v)beta6-mediated TGF-beta activation is a logical strategy to treat lung fibrosis.<h4>Objectives</h4>To determine, by genetic and pharmacologic approaches, whe ...[more]

PMID: 17916808

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Project description:BackgroundRadiotherapy is the main treatment modality for thoracic tumours, but it may induce pulmonary fibrosis. Currently, the pathogenesis of radiation-induced pulmonary fibrosis (RIPF) is unclear, and effective treatments are lacking. Transforming growth factor beta 1 (TGFβ1) plays a central role in RIPF. We found that activated TGFβ1 had better performance for radiation pneumonitis (RP) risk prediction by detecting activated and total TGFβ1 levels in patient serum. αv integrin plays key roles in TGFβ1 activation, but the role of αv integrin-mediated TGFβ1 activation in RIPF is unclear. Here, we investigated the role of αv integrin-mediated TGFβ1 activation in RIPF and the application of the integrin antagonist cilengitide to prevent RIPF.MethodsItgavloxP/loxP ;Pdgfrb-Cre mice were generated by conditionally knocking out Itgav in myofibroblasts, and wild-type mice were treated with cilengitide or placebo. All mice received 16 Gy of radiation or underwent a sham radiation procedure. Lung fibrosis was measured by a modified Ashcroft score and microcomputed tomography (CT). An enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) was used to measure the serum TGFβ1 concentration, and total Smad2/3 and p-Smad2/3 levels were determined via Western blotting.ResultsConditional Itgav knockout significantly attenuated RIPF (p < .01). Hounsfield units (HUs) in the lungs were reduced in the knockout mice compared with the control mice (p < .001). Conditional Itgav knockout decreased active TGFβ1 secretion and inhibited fibroblast p-Smad2/3 expression. Exogenous active TGFβ1, but not latent TGFβ1, reversed these reductions. Furthermore, cilengitide treatment elicited similar results and prevented RIPF.ConclusionsThe present study revealed that conditional Itgav knockout and cilengitide treatment both significantly attenuated RIPF in mice by inhibiting αv integrin-mediated TGFβ1 activation.HighlightsActivated TGFβ1 has a superior capacity in predicting radiation pneumonitis (RP) risk and plays a vital role in the development of radiation-induced pulmonary fibrosis (RIPF). Conditional knock out Itgav in myofibroblasts prevented mice from developing RIPF. Cilengitide alleviated the development of RIPF by inhibiting αv integrin-mediated TGFβ1 activation and may be used in targeted approaches for preventing RIPF.

Project description:Fibrosis is the pathological consequence of stress-induced tissue remodeling and matrix accumulation. Increased levels of plasminogen activator inhibitor type I (PAI-1) have been shown to promote fibrosis in multiple organ systems. Paradoxically, homozygous genetic deficiency of PAI-1 is associated with spontaneous age-dependent, cardiac-selective fibrosis in mice. We have identified a novel PAI-1-dependent mechanism that regulates cardiomyocyte-derived fibrogenic signals and cardiac transcriptional pathways during injury.Cardiac fibrosis in subjects with homozygous mutation in SERPINE-1 was evaluated with late gadolinium-enhanced cardiac magnetic resonance imaging. A murine cardiac injury model was performed by subcutaneous infusion of either saline or Angiotensin II by osmotic minipumps. We evaluated blood pressure, cardiac function (by echocardiography), fibrosis (with Masson Trichrome staining), and apoptosis (with TUNEL staining), and we performed transcriptome analysis (with RNA sequencing). We further evaluated fibrotic signaling in isolated murine primary ventricular myocytes.Cardiac fibrosis was detected in 2 otherwise healthy humans with complete PAI-1 deficiency because of a homozygous frameshift mutation in SERPINE-1. In addition to its suppressive role during spontaneous cardiac fibrosis in multiple species, we hypothesized that PAI-1 also regulates fibrosis during cardiac injury. Treatment of young PAI-1-/- mice with Angiotensin II induced extensive hypertrophy and fibrotic cardiomyopathy, with increased cardiac apoptosis and both reactive and replacement fibrosis. Although Angiotensin II-induced hypertension was blunted in PAI-1-/- mice, cardiac hypertrophy was accelerated. Furthermore, ventricular myocytes were found to be an important source of cardiac transforming growth factor-? (TGF-?) and PAI-1 regulated TGF-? synthesis by cardiomyocytes in vitro as well as in vivo during cardiac injury. Transcriptome analysis of ventricular RNA after Angiotensin II treatment confirmed that PAI-1 deficiency significantly enhanced multiple TGF-? signaling elements and transcriptional targets, including genes for extracellular matrix components, mediators of extracellular matrix remodeling, matricellular proteins, and cardiac integrins compared with wild-type mice.PAI-1 is an essential repressor of cardiac fibrosis in mammals. We define a novel cardiomyocyte-specific regulatory mechanism for TGF-? production by PAI-1, which explains the paradoxical effect of PAI-1 deficiency in promoting cardiac-selective fibrosis. Thus, PAI-1 is a molecular switch that controls the cardiac TGF-? axis and its early transcriptional effects that lead to myocardial fibrosis.

Project description:In systemic sclerosis (SSc), a common and aetiologically mysterious form of scleroderma (defined as pathological fibrosis of the skin), previously healthy adults acquire fibrosis of the skin and viscera in association with autoantibodies. Familial recurrence is extremely rare and causal genes have not been identified. Although the onset of fibrosis in SSc typically correlates with the production of autoantibodies, whether they contribute to disease pathogenesis or simply serve as a marker of disease remains controversial and the mechanism for their induction is largely unknown. The study of SSc is hindered by a lack of animal models that recapitulate the aetiology of this complex disease. To gain a foothold in the pathogenesis of pathological skin fibrosis, we studied stiff skin syndrome (SSS), a rare but tractable Mendelian disorder leading to childhood onset of diffuse skin fibrosis with autosomal dominant inheritance and complete penetrance. We showed previously that SSS is caused by heterozygous missense mutations in the gene (FBN1) encoding fibrillin-1, the main constituent of extracellular microfibrils. SSS mutations all localize to the only domain in fibrillin-1 that harbours an Arg-Gly-Asp (RGD) motif needed to mediate cell-matrix interactions by binding to cell-surface integrins. Here we show that mouse lines harbouring analogous amino acid substitutions in fibrillin-1 recapitulate aggressive skin fibrosis that is prevented by integrin-modulating therapies and reversed by antagonism of the pro-fibrotic cytokine transforming growth factor ? (TGF-?). Mutant mice show skin infiltration of pro-inflammatory immune cells including plasmacytoid dendritic cells, T helper cells and plasma cells, and also autoantibody production; these findings are normalized by integrin-modulating therapies or TGF-? antagonism. These results show that alterations in cell-matrix interactions are sufficient to initiate and sustain inflammatory and pro-fibrotic programmes and highlight new therapeutic strategies.

Project description:Radiation fibrosis of the lung is a late toxicity of thoracic irradiation. Epidermal growth factor (EGF) signaling has previously been implicated in radiation lung injury. We hypothesized that TGF-?, an EGF receptor ligand, plays a key role in radiation-induced fibrosis in lung. Mice deficient in transforming growth factor (TGF-?(-/-)) and control C57Bl/6J (C57-WT) mice were exposed to thoracic irradiation in 5 daily fractions of 6 Gy. Cohorts of mice were followed for survival (n ? 5 per group) and tissue collection (n = 3 per strain and time point). Collagen accumulation in irradiated lungs was assessed by Masson's trichrome staining and analysis of hydroxyproline content. Cytokine levels in lung tissue were assessed with ELISA. The effects of TGF-? on pneumocyte and fibroblast proliferation and collagen production were analyzed in vitro. Lysyl oxidase (LOX) expression and activity were measured in vitro and in vivo. Irradiated C57-WT mice had a median survival of 24.4 weeks compared to 48.2 weeks for irradiated TGF-?(-/-) mice (P = 0.001). At 20 weeks after irradiation, hydroxyproline content was markedly increased in C57-WT mice exposed to radiation compared to TGF-?(-/-) mice exposed to radiation or unirradiated C57-WT mice (63.0, 30.5 and 37.6 ?g/lung, respectively, P = 0.01). C57-WT mice exposed to radiation had dense foci of subpleural fibrosis at 20 weeks after exposure, whereas the lungs of irradiated TGF-? (-/-) mice were largely devoid of fibrotic foci. Lung tissue concentrations of IL-1?, IL-4, TNF-?, TGF-? and EGF at multiple time points after irradiation were similar in C57-WT and TGF-?(-/-) mice. TGF-? in lung tissue of C57-WT mice rose rapidly after irradiation and remained elevated through 20 weeks. TGF-?(-/-) mice had lower basal LOX expression than C57-WT mice. Both LOX expression and LOX activity were increased after irradiation in all mice but to a lesser degree in TGF-?(-/-) mice. Treatment of NIH-3T3 fibroblasts with TGF-? resulted in increases in proliferation, collagen production and LOX activity. These studies identify TGF-? as a critical mediator of radiation-induced lung injury and a novel therapeutic target in this setting. Further, these data implicate TGF-? as a mediator of collagen maturation through a TGF-? independent activation of lysyl oxidase.

Dataset Information

Inhibition of integrin alpha(v)beta6, an activator of latent transforming growth factor-beta, prevents radiation-induced lung fibrosis.

Rationale

Objectives

Methods

Measurements and main results

Conclusions

Publications

Inhibition of integrin alpha(v)beta6, an activator of latent transforming growth factor-beta, prevents radiation-induced lung fibrosis.

Similar Datasets

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