Project description:We compared mRNA expression in alveolar macrophages between bleomycin–treated wild-type and S1pr2-/- mice, using DNA microarray analysis. In S1pr2-/- macrophages, 398 genes showed decreases to less than 50% of the levels in wild-type macrophages. In contrast, 122 genes showed more than 2.0-fold increases in S1pr2-/- macrophages compared with wild-type macrophages. The downregulated genes in S1pr2-/- mice included the following potentially fibrosis–related genes: profibrotic cytokines, chemokines, and the markers characteristic of classically activated (M1) and alternatively activated (M2) macrophages.
Project description:Hyperglycemia is an essential factor leading to micro- and macrovascular diabetic complications. Macrophages are key innate immune regulators of inflammation that undergo 2 major directions of functional polarization: classically (M1) and alternatively (M2) activated macrophages. The aim of the study was to examine the effect of hyperglycemia on transcriptional activation of M0, M1 and M2 human macrophages.
Project description:Human CD14 positive monocytes were purified from healthy volunteers’ blood and cultured in vitro for 4, 12, 24, 72 hours. While culturing, macrophages were activated alternatively with interleukin-4 (IL-4 100 ng/ml) or classically with interferon-gamma (IFNg 100 ng/ml)+tumor necrosis factor (TNF 50 ng/ml) or left without activation. Simultaneously, macrophages were also treated with vehicle (DMSO:ethanol) or 1mM synthetic PPARg agonist, Rosiglitazone. We used Affymetrix microarrays (U133Plus 2.0) to analyze activation and PPARg-induced gene expression changes. Monocytes from 3 donors were used and treated as indicated in Summary.
Project description:Background: Obesity is associated with infiltration of macrophages into adipose tissue. Adipose macrophages may contribute to an elevated inflammatory status by secreting a variety of pro-inflammatory mediators, including TNFalpha and IL-6. Recent data suggest that during diet-induced obesity the phenotype of adipose-resident macrophages changes from alternatively activated macrophages towards a more classical and pro-inflammatory phenotype. Here, we explore the effect of PPARγ-activation on obesity-induced inflammation in 129SV mice fed a high fat diet for 20 weeks. High fat feeding increased bodyweight gain, adipose tissue mass and liver triglycerides. Rosiglitazone treatment further increased adipose mass, reduced liver triglycerides and changed adipose tissue morphology towards smaller adipocytes. Surprisingly, rosiglitazone markedly increased the number of macrophages in adipose tissue, as shown by immunohistochemical analysis and quantification of macrophage marker genes CD68 and F4/80+. In adipose tissue, markers for classically activated macrophages including IL-18 were down regulated whereas markers characteristic for alternatively activated macrophages (Arginase 1, IL-10) were up regulated by rosiglitazone. Importantly, conditioned media from rosiglitazone-treated alternatively activated macrophages neutralized the inhibitory effect of macrophages on 3T3-L1 adipocyte differentiation, suggesting that alternatively activated macrophages may be involved in mediating the effects of rosiglitazone on adipose tissue morphology and mass. Our results suggest that short term rosiglitazone treatment increases infiltration of alternatively activated macrophages in adipose tissue. The alternatively activated macrophages might play a role in PPARγ-dependent expansion and remodeling of adipose tissue. Keywords: metabolic state analysis