Project description:Genetic variations at the 17q21 asthma-risk locus regulate the expression of gasdermin B (GSDMB) and ORMDL3, influencing inflammatory responses and sphingolipid metabolism. While asthma-associated 17q21 variations are known to affect ORMDL3 expression in immune and airway smooth muscle cells, its role in airway epithelial sphingolipid metabolism remains unclear. We investigated whether asthma and 17q21 genetic variations influence sphingolipid composition in the upper respiratory tract and how immune vs. epithelial cells contribute to this process. Sphingolipid profiles were analyzed in nasal fluid and blood from children with and without asthma. We also examined gene expression and sphingolipid composition in nasal epithelial cells and PBMCs from healthy adults homozygous for the rs7216389 C/C and T/T (asthma-risk) genotypes. Children with atopic asthma exhibited lower nasal fluid sphingolipids, including sphinganine, dihydroceramides, and ceramides, independent of corticosteroid use or allergic rhinitis. Asthma was further associated with higher plasma sphingolipids and lower blood cell sphingolipids, the latter mirroring patterns in nasal fluid. In PBMCs, the T allele increased ORMDL3 expression, suppressing de novo sphingolipid synthesis. However, in nasal epithelial cells, the T allele mainly increased GSDMB and there was no effect on sphingolipid metabolism. These findings establish nasal fluid sphingolipid profiling as a potential marker for atopic asthma and provide evidence of a cell-type-specific effect of 17q21 genetic variants. While ORMDL3-mediated sphingolipid suppression occurs in PBMCs and not airway epithelial cells, its systemic effects may contribute to lower airway sphingolipids in asthma.
Project description:Asthma and postinfectious bronchiolitis obliterans (PIBO) are chronic lung diseases characterized by recurrent episodes of wheezing. Mycoplasma, adenovirus, and respiratory syncytial virus infections can trigger both asthma and PIBO. These two diseases have common etiologic mechanisms that cause airway epithelial injury. They are often difficult to differentiate clinically in preschool children because both are exacerbated by viral infections and respond similarly to steroids and β2 agonists. PIBO, which is occasionally observed in children, is diagnosed through characteristic findings of air trapping on computed tomography or in biopsy samples of lung tissue. However, researchers have not clearly identified the specific blood markers that can distinguish these diseases or the differences in the mechanisms of development. We performed proteomic analysis of plasma to identify specific biomarkers that can be helpful in differentiating asthma from PIBO. This study discovered plasma biomarker candidates by measuring plasma proteome sequential window acquisition of all theoretical mass spectra (SWATH-MS) and included 30 healthy children, 18 with asthma and 15 with PIBO. was used to measure proteins in plasma samples. We identified and quantified 354 proteins across all 63 samples in the SWATH-MS analysis.
Project description:We found that fuse ΔLMP1 to MAVS could strengthen MAVS mediated inhibition of PRRSV replication in MARC-145 cells. To better understand the biological function of the fusion protein ΔLMP1-MAVS, overall gene expression of MARC-145 cells transfected with ΔLMP1-MAVS or MAVS was evaluated by mRNA-seq. The result showed that ΔLMP1-MAVS upregulated a number of genes associated with innate immune responses to viral infection, including plenty of interferon-stimulated genes. This study provides reference date to research the working mechanism of ΔLMP1-MAVS.
Project description:Porcine respiratory and reproductive syndrome virus (PRRSV) is a virus infecting swine and causes swine abortion. Previously, non-structural protein 11 (Nsp11) from PRRSV was shown to have inhibitory function to type I IFN signaling. In this project, we want to see in addition to type I IFN, whether other cellular pathways are influenced by Nsp11 systemtically. A cell line stably expressing PRRSV Nsp11 was established, designated as MARC-Nsp11 cells, and an RNA microarray was conducted using these cells and WT MARC-145 cells
Project description:The goal of this investigation was to establish proof of concept that nasal epithelium can be used as a proxy for the airway epithelium in studies of allergic asthma. We collected PBMCs, nasal epithelia, and bronchial epithelia from 12 subjects with allergic asthma and 12 control subjects without asthma, all non-Hispanic white nonsmoker adults. We conclude that genomic profiling of nasal epithelia captures most disease-relevant changes identified in airway epithelia but also provides additional targets that are most likely influenced by exposures. Thus, epigenetic marks in nasal epithelia may prove useful as a biomarker of disease severity and response to treatment or as a biosensor of the environment in asthma.
Project description:The goal of this investigation was to establish proof of concept that nasal epithelium can be used as a proxy for the airway epithelium in studies of allergic asthma. We collected PBMCs, nasal epithelia, and bronchial epithelia from 12 subjects with allergic asthma and 12 control subjects without asthma, all non-Hispanic white nonsmoker adults. We conclude that genomic profiling of nasal epithelia captures most disease-relevant changes identified in airway epithelia but also provides additional targets that are most likely influenced by exposures. Thus, epigenetic marks in nasal epithelia may prove useful as a biomarker of disease severity and response to treatment or as a biosensor of the environment in asthma.