Project description:Preschool wheeze is an early life bronchoconstriction disorder with an increased risk of progression to chilhood asthma. Preschool wheeze is typically triggered by respiratory infection, but airway inflammatory phenotypes, including the phenotype of airway macrophages (AMs), in preschool wheeze is not fully understood. In this study, AMs were sorted from preschool wheeze patients and non-wheezing paediatric controls under clinical investigation for chronic cough and gene expression assessed by Illumina mRNA sequencing (110 base pair, paired end reads). A number of differentially expressed genes were observed in AMs from preschool wheeze compared to those from controls, including genes encoding pro-inflammatory chemokines and genes associated with a more immature and inflammatory AM phenotype. These findings suggest that AMs contribute to an altered airway immune landscape in preschool wheeze.
Project description:Airway macrophages (AMs) are the most abundant leukocytes in the healthy airway lumen and have a highly specialised but plastic phenotype that is governed by the local microenvironment. AMs are thought to maintain immunological homeostasis in the steady state, but have also been implicated in the pathogenesis of allergic airway disease (AAD). To better understand these potentially contrasting AM functions, bulk RNA sequencing was performed on murine AMs obtained during experimental AAD driven by repeated house dust mite inhalation (AM[HDM]s), comparing to control AMs from non-allergic mice. AM[HDM]s showed increased expression of genes associated with antigen presentation, inflammatory cell recruitment and tissue repair, including several chemokines and matrix metalloproteinases. This was accompanied by increased expression of mitochondrial electron transport chain subunit genes and the retinoic acid biosynthetic enzyme gene Raldh2. Conversely, AM[HDM]s displayed decreased expression of a number of cell cycle genes, genes related to cytoskeletal functions and a subset of genes implicated in antimicrobial innate immunity, such as Tlr5, Il18 and Tnf. Differential gene expression in AM[HDM]s was consistent with upstream effects of the cytokines IL-4 and IFN-γ, both of which were at increased concentrations in lung tissue after HDM treatment. These data highlight diverse gene expression changes in the total AM population in a clinically relevant mouse model of AAD, overall suggestive of contributions to inflammation and tissue repair/remodelling, but decreases in certain steady state cellular and immunological functions.
Project description:Disparate Oxidant-related Gene Expression of Human Small Airway Epithelium Compared to Autologous Alveolar Macrophages in Response to the In Vivo Oxidant Stress of Cigarette Smoking The oxidant burden of cigarette smoking induces lung cell dysfunction, and play a significant role in the pathogenesis of lung disease. Two cell populations directly exposed to the oxidants in cigarette smoke are the small airway epithelium and alveolar macrophages. Of these, the epithelium appears to be more vulnerable to smoking, becoming disordered in differentiation, repair and function, while alveolar macrophages become activated, without becoming diseased. In this context, we asked: for the same individuals, what is the baseline trancriptome of oxidant-related genes in small airway epithelium compared to alveolar macrophages and do the responses of the transcriptome of these 2 cell populations differ substantially to inhaled cigarette smoke? To address these questions we used microarray gene expression and TaqMan analysis to assess the gene expression profile of known oxidant-related genes in paired samples recovered by bronchoscopy from small airway epithelium and alveolar macrophages from the same healthy nonsmokers and normal smokers. Of the 155 oxidant-related genes surveyed, 122 (77%) were expressed in both cell populations in nonsmokers. However, of the genes expressed by both cell populations, oxidant related gene expression levels were higher in alveolar macrophages (67 genes, 43%) than small airway epithelium (37 genes, 24%). There were more oxidant-related genes uniquely expressed in the small airway epithelium (17%), than in alveolar macrophages (5%). In healthy smokers, the majority of oxidant-related genes were expressed in both cell populations, but there were marked differences in the numbers of oxidant-related genes that smoking up- or down-regulated. While smoking up-regulated 15 genes (10%) and down-regulated 7 genes (5%) in the small airway epithelium, smoking had far less effect on alveolar macrophages [only 4 (3%) genes up-regulated, and only 1 (0.6%) down-regulated]. Only a small number of smoking responsive oxidant-related genes overlapped between the two cell types (2 up-regulated, and no down-regulated genes). Consistent with this observation, pathway analysis of smoking-responsive genes in the small airway epithelium showed oxidant-related pathways dominated, but in alveolar macrophages immune-response pathways dominated. Thus, the responses of the oxidant-related transcriptome of cells with an identical genome and exposed to the same oxidant stress of cigarette smoking are very different, with responses of oxidant-related genes of alveolar macrophages far more subdued than that of small airway epithelium, consistent with the clinical observation that, while the small airway epithelium is vulnerable, alveolar macrophages are not "diseased" in response to the oxidant stress of cigarette smoking. Gene expression profiles of known oxidant-related genes in paired samples recovered by bronchoscopy from small airway epithelium and alveolar macrophages from the same healthy nonsmokers and normal smokers.
Project description:Rationale: Asthma and atopy shares common features including Th2-inflammation. However, impairment of airway function seems to be absent in atopy. Increased understanding of the complex cellular and molecular pathways defining the similarities and differences between asthma and atopy may be achieved by transcriptomic analysis (RNA-Seq). Hypothesis and Aims: As the airway smooth muscle (ASM) layer plays an important role in airway function, we hypothesized that the transcriptomic profile of the ASM layer in endobronchial biopsies is different between atopic asthma patients and atopic healthy controls. First, we examined the differences in transcriptomic profiles of the ASM layer in endobronchial biopsies between atopic mild, steroid-free asthma patients, and atopic and non-atopic healthy controls. Second, we investigated the association between the transcriptomic profiles of the ASM layer and airway function. Methods: This cross-sectional study included 12 steroid-free atopic asthma patients, 6 atopic, and 6 non-atopic healthy controls. RNA of ASM from 4 endobronchial biopsies per subject was isolated and sequenced (GS FLX+, 454/Roche). Ingenuity Pathway Analysis was used to identify gene networks. Comparison of the numbers of reads per gene in asthma and controls was based on the negative binomial distribution. At the current sample size the estimated false discovery rate was approximately 1%. Results: Yield of isolated RNA was 30-821ng. We identified 174 differentially expressed genes between asthma and atopic controls, 108 between asthma and non-atopic controls, and 135 between atopic and non-atopic controls. A set of 8 genes was identified, which seems to define asthma patients from non-asthmatic controls regardless of atopy. Four of these genes were significantly associated with airway hyperresponsiveness. Conclusion: A difference in transcriptomic profile of the airway smooth muscle layer in asthma patients compared to atopic and non-atopic healthy controls may lead to a different regulation of inflammatory pathways and of airway smooth muscle function and development resulting in impaired airway function. This cross-sectional transcriptomics study consisted of 2 visits. At visit 1, asthma patients (n=12), and healthy atopic (n=6) and non-atopic (n=6) controls were screened for eligibility to participate according to the in- and exclusion criteria. Spirometry and a methacholine bronchoprovocation test were performed. At visit 2, FEV1 reversibility was measured and 4 endobronchial biopsies per subject were collected during a bronchoscopy. Airway smooth muscle was collected from the biopsies by laser capture microdissection and total RNA isolated. cDNA was prepared using the Ovation RNA-Seq System (NuGEN). RNA-Seq was performed using the GS FLX+ instrument (454/Roche). Sequence reads were mapped against the human genome (hg19; UCSC). Comparison of the numbers of reads per gene between asthma and healthy controls was based on the negative binomial distribution and carried out with the R package DESeq including correction for multiple testing.