Milk fat globule-epidermal growth factor-factor 8 attenuates neutrophil infiltration in acute lung injury via modulation of CXCR2

M Aziz, A Matsuda, WL Yang, A Jacob… - The Journal of …, 2012 - journals.aai.org
M Aziz, A Matsuda, WL Yang, A Jacob, P Wang
The Journal of Immunology, 2012journals.aai.org
Excessive neutrophil infiltration to the lungs is a hallmark of acute lung injury (ALI). Milk fat
globule epidermal growth factor-factor 8 (MFG-E8) was originally identified for phagocytosis
of apoptotic cells. Subsequent studies revealed its diverse cellular functions. However,
whether MFG-E8 can regulate neutrophil function to alleviate inflammation is unknown. We
therefore aimed to reveal MFG-E8 roles in regulating lung neutrophil infiltration during ALI.
To induce ALI, C57BL/6J wild-type (WT) and Mfge8−/− mice were intratracheally injected …
Abstract
Excessive neutrophil infiltration to the lungs is a hallmark of acute lung injury (ALI). Milk fat globule epidermal growth factor-factor 8 (MFG-E8) was originally identified for phagocytosis of apoptotic cells. Subsequent studies revealed its diverse cellular functions. However, whether MFG-E8 can regulate neutrophil function to alleviate inflammation is unknown. We therefore aimed to reveal MFG-E8 roles in regulating lung neutrophil infiltration during ALI. To induce ALI, C57BL/6J wild-type (WT) and Mfge8−/− mice were intratracheally injected with LPS (5 mg/kg). Lung tissue damage was assessed by histology, and the neutrophils were counted by a hemacytometer. Apoptotic cells in lungs were determined by TUNEL, whereas caspase-3 and myeloperoxidase activities were assessed spectrophotometrically. CXCR2 and G protein-coupled receptor kinase 2 expressions in neutrophils were measured by flow cytometry. Following LPS challenge, Mfge8−/− mice exhibited extensive lung damage due to exaggerated infiltration of neutrophils and production of TNF-α, MIP-2, and myeloperoxidase. An increased number of apoptotic cells was trapped into the lungs of Mfge8−/− mice compared with WT mice, which may be due to insufficient phagocytosis of apoptotic cells or increased occurrence of apoptosis through the activation of caspase-3. In vitro studies using MIP-2–mediated chemotaxis revealed higher migration of neutrophils of Mfge8−/− mice than those of WT mice via increased surface exposures to CXCR2. Administration of recombinant murine MFG-E8 reduces neutrophil migration through upregulation of GRK2 and downregulation of surface CXCR2 expression. Conversely, these effects could be blocked by anti-α v integrin Abs. These studies clearly indicate the importance of MFG-E8 in ameliorating neutrophil infiltration and suggest MFG-E8 as a novel therapeutic potential for ALI.
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