Hyaluronidase 2 (Hyal2) is a hyaluronan (HA)-degrading enzyme found intracellularly or/and anchored to the plasma membrane through glycosylphosphatidylinositol (GPI). Normal human bronchial epithelial cells (NHBE) grown at the air-liquid interphase (ALI), treated with PI-specific phospholipase C (PI-PLC), exhibited increased Hyal activity in secretions and decreased protein and activity on the apical membrane, confirming that GPI-anchored Hyal2 is expressed in NHBE cells and it remains active in its soluble form. We have reported that HA degradation was mediated by reactive oxygen species (ROS) in human airways. Here we show that ROS increase Hyal2 expression and activity in NHBE cells and that the p38MAPK signaling pathway is involved in this effect. Hyal2 induction was confirmed by using small interfering RNA (siRNA) expressing lentivirus. These in vitro findings correlated in vivo with smokers, where increased Hyal2 immunoreactivity in the epithelium was associated with augmented levels of HA and the appearance of low molecular mass HA species in bronchial secretions. In summary, this work provides evidence that ROS induce Hyal2, suggesting that Hyal2 is likely responsible for the sustained HA fragmentation in the airway lumen observed in inflammatory conditions associated with oxidative stress.
Hyaluronan (HA)3 is a non-sulfated glycosaminoglycan found in the extracellular matrix, in body fluids, and in secretions of mammals. HA is synthesized by three transmembrane isoenzymes: HAS1, HAS2, and HAS3 at the inner face of the plasma membrane and translocated into the extracellular space (1).The association with various binding proteins (2, 3) confers HA with a unique plasticity to organize extracellular matrix (ECM) in a tissue specific fashion (for review see Ref. 4), varying from a tightly cross-linked mesh in cartilage to a highly hydrated matrix in dermis and vitreous humor (5).In addition, HA induces intracellular signaling by binding specific receptors at the cell surface, (6, 7) orchestrating a variety of host responses generally requiring an extensive deposition of a HA in the ECM. This deposition is essential for cumulus oophorus fertilization (8) as well as for proliferation and migration of mesenchymal cells. Airway smooth muscle cells exposed to polyinosinic acid-polycytidylic acid synthesize an abnormal HA matrix with cable-like structures that bind and retains leukocytes (9, 10), suggesting that HA play key roles on host defense against infections as well.Biological functions of HA are associated with its size (6, 11). For instance, high molecular weight HA (HMWHA) exhibit anti-angiogenic, anti-inflammatory, and immunosuppressive effects while small HA fragments are angiogenic and proinflammatory (12, 13). The contrasting responses elicited by different sizes of HA are exemplified in a recent report in which HMWHA attenuated while low molecular weight HA (LMWHA) increased ozone-induced airway hyperreactivity, in a mouse model of asthma (14).In human airway epithelium, HA is present at the lumen as...
Background: Cigarette smoke (CigS) induces hyaluronan fragmentation and increases epithelial permeability. Results: CigS and HA fragments decrease E-cadherin expression that is prevented by knocking down layilin. Conclusion: HA fragments bind to layilin and signal through RhoA/ROCK to inhibit E-cadherin. Significance: Airway epithelium is our first line of defense against inhaled insults. HA fragments released by CigS disrupt this barrier.
Pharmacological activation of integrin CD11b/CD18 (αMβ2, Mac-1, and CR3) shows anti-inflammatory benefits in a variety of animal models of human disease, and it is a novel therapeutic strategy. Reasoning that genetic models can provide an orthogonal and direct system for the mechanistic study of CD11b agonism, we present in this study, to our knowledge, a novel knock-in model of constitutive active CD11b in mice. We genetically targeted the Itgam gene (which codes for CD11b) to introduce a point mutation that results in the I332G substitution in the protein. The I332G mutation in CD11b promotes an active, higher-affinity conformation of the ligand-binding I/A-domain (CD11b αA-domain). In vitro, this mutation increased adhesion of knock-in neutrophils to fibrinogen and decreased neutrophil chemotaxis to a formyl–Met–Leu–Phe gradient. In vivo, CD11bI332G animals showed a reduction in recruitment of neutrophils and macrophages in a model of sterile peritonitis. This genetic activation of CD11b also protected against development of atherosclerosis in the setting of hyperlipidemia via reduction of macrophage recruitment into atherosclerotic lesions. Thus, our animal model of constitutive genetic activation of CD11b can be a useful tool for the study of integrin activation and its potential contribution to modulating leukocyte recruitment and alleviating different inflammatory diseases.
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