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Role of the mitochondrial protein cyclophilin D in skin wound healing and collagen secretion
Ritu Bansal, Monica Torres, Matthew Hunt, Nuoqi Wang, Margarita Chatzopoulou, Mansi Manchanda, Evan P. Taddeo, Cynthia Shu, Orian S. Shirihai, Etty Bachar-Wikstrom, Jakob D. Wikstrom
Ritu Bansal, Monica Torres, Matthew Hunt, Nuoqi Wang, Margarita Chatzopoulou, Mansi Manchanda, Evan P. Taddeo, Cynthia Shu, Orian S. Shirihai, Etty Bachar-Wikstrom, Jakob D. Wikstrom
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Research Article Dermatology

Role of the mitochondrial protein cyclophilin D in skin wound healing and collagen secretion

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Abstract

Central for wound healing is the formation of granulation tissue, which largely consists of collagen and whose importance stretches past wound healing, including being implicated in both fibrosis and skin aging. Cyclophilin D (CyD) is a mitochondrial protein that regulates the permeability transition pore, known for its role in apoptosis and ischemia-reperfusion. To date, the role of CyD in human wound healing and collagen generation has been largely unexplored. Here, we show that CyD was upregulated in normal wounds and venous ulcers, likely adaptive as CyD inhibition impaired reepithelialization, granulation tissue formation, and wound closure in both human and pig models. Overexpression of CyD increased keratinocyte migration and fibroblast proliferation, while its inhibition reduced migration. Independent of wound healing, CyD inhibition in fibroblasts reduced collagen secretion and caused endoplasmic reticulum collagen accumulation, while its overexpression increased collagen secretion. This was confirmed in a Ppif-KO mouse model, which showed a reduction in skin collagen. Overall, this study revealed previously unreported roles of CyD in skin, with implications for wound healing and beyond.

Authors

Ritu Bansal, Monica Torres, Matthew Hunt, Nuoqi Wang, Margarita Chatzopoulou, Mansi Manchanda, Evan P. Taddeo, Cynthia Shu, Orian S. Shirihai, Etty Bachar-Wikstrom, Jakob D. Wikstrom

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Figure 8

Cyclophilin D inhibition causes ER aggregation of collagen 1 while its OE increases collagen 1 secretion in human dermal fibroblasts.

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Cyclophilin D inhibition causes ER aggregation of collagen 1 while its O...
(A) Assessment of intra- and extracellular collagen 1 by confocal immunofluorescence imaging. The white lines depict the outlines of fibroblast cells. Zooms are depicted underneath images. Scale bar: 10 μm (full), 5 μm (zoom). (B) Quantification (mean ± SEM) of extracellular collagen 1 fluorescence intensity. (C) Colocalization coefficient analysis (mean ± SEM) of collagen 1 with ER marker HSP47 M2. Two-way ANOVA. (D) Representative TEM images of fibroblasts in the skin of WT, Ppif+/–, and Ppif–/– mice. Scale bar: 5 μM (left and middle panels) and 10 μM (right panel) (full size); 1 μM (zoom). Red arrows depict ER expansion. (E) Quantification (mean ± SEM) of ER size. Two-way ANOVA. (F–H) qPCR (mean ± SEM) of ER stress genes in gapmer-mediated PPIF KD compared with negative gapmer (F), PPIF OE compared with pCMV (G), and NIM811- compared with vehicle-treated fibroblasts (H). n = 3 biological replicates for all experiments. Two-tailed, unpaired t tests. ****P < 0.0001; ***P < 0.001; **P < 0.01; *P < 0.05.

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