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Human primary airway basal cells display a continuum of molecular phases from health to disease in COPD

ABSTRACT: Airway basal cells are crucial for regeneration of the human lung airway epithelium, and are thought to be important contributors to chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). However, to reveal how basal cells contribute to disease, the basal cells need to be further characterized. We aimed to study primary human basal cells from healthy donors and COPD patients in order to identify key differences that could further our understanding of the disease mechanisms. In this study, we optimized a sorting protocol for primary human basal cells dependent on cell size and NGFR expression. The basal cell population was found to be heterogeneous in contrast to cultured basal cells. In addition, significant differences such as KRT14 expression was found exclusively in cultured cells. Also, colony-forming capacity was significantly increased in cultured cells showing a clonal enrichment in vitro. Next, by single cell RNA sequencing on primary basal cells from healthy donors and COPD patients, the gene expression changes revealed a continuum ranging from healthy basal cell signatures to diseased basal cells phenotypes. We identified several upregulated genes that may be indicative of COPD, such as stress response related genes GADD45B and AHSA1, along with genes involved in the response to hypoxia such as CITED2 and SOD1. Taken together, the presence of both healthy and diseased basal cells in stage IV COPD demonstrates the potential for regeneration through the discovery of novel therapeutic targets. In addition, we show the importance of studying primary basal cells when investigating disease mechanisms in the human lung.

ORGANISM(S): Homo sapiens

PROVIDER: GSE158942 | GEO | 2021/03/01

REPOSITORIES: GEO

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Project description:The apical junctional complex (AJC), composed of tight junctions and adherens junctions, is essential for maintaining epithelial barrier function. Since cigarette smoking and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), the major smoking-induced disease, are both associated with increased lung epithelial permeability, we hypothesized that smoking alters the transcriptional program regulating AJC integrity in the small airway epithelium (SAE), the primary site of pathological changes in COPD. Transcriptome analysis revealed a global down-regulation of physiological AJC gene expression in the SAE of healthy smokers (n=53) compared to healthy nonsmokers (n=59), an observation associated with changes in molecular pathways regulating epithelial differentiation such as PTEN signaling and accompanied by induction of cancer-related AJC genes. Genome-wide co-expression analysis identified a smoking-sensitive AJC transcriptional network. The overall expression of AJC-associated genes was further decreased in COPD smokers (n=23). Exposure of human airway epithelial cells to cigarette smoke extract in vitro resulted in down-regulation of several AJC-related genes, accompanied by decreased transepithelial resistance. Thus, cigarette smoking alters the AJC gene expression architecture in the human airway epithelium, providing a molecular basis for the dysregulation of airway epithelial barrier function during the development of smoking-induced lung disease. The apical junctional complex (AJC), composed of tight junctions and adherens junctions, is essential for maintaining epithelial barrier function. Since cigarette smoking and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), the major smoking-induced disease, are both associated with increased lung epithelial permeability, we hypothesized that smoking alters the transcriptional program regulating AJC integrity in the small airway epithelium (SAE), the primary site of pathological changes in COPD. In this study, microarray analysis of the SAE obtained from 53 healthy nonsmokers, 59 healthy smokers, and 23 smokers with COPD was performed to determine physiological AJC gene expression architecture in the SAE and its modification by cigarette smoking and during the development of COPD.

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Human primary airway basal cells display a continuum of molecular phases from health to disease in COPD

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