Keratinocyte growth factor accelerates wound closure in airway epithelium during cyclic mechanical strain.

The airway epithelium may be damaged by inhalation of noxious agents, in response to pathogens, or during endotracheal intubation and mechanical ventilation. Maintenance of an intact epithelium is important for lung fluid balance, and the loss of epithelium may stimulate inflammatory responses. Epithelial repair in the airways following injury must occur on a substrate that undergoes cyclic elongation and compression during respiration. We have previously shown that cyclic mechanical strain inhibits wound closure in the airway epithelium (Savla and Waters, 1998b). In this study, we investigated the stimulation of epithelial wound closure by keratinocyte growth factor (KGF) in vitro and the mechanisms by which KGF overcomes the inhibition due to mechanical strain. Primary cultures of normal human bronchial epithelial cells (NHBE) and a cell line of human airway epithelial cells, Calu 3, were grown on Silastic membranes, and a wound was scraped across the well. The wells were then exposed to cyclic strain using the Flexercell Strain Unit, and wound closure was measured. While cyclic elongation (20% maximum) and cyclic compression (approximately 2%) both inhibited wound closure in untreated wells, treatment with KGF (50 ng/ml) significantly accelerated wound closure and overcame the inhibition due to cyclic strain. Since wound closure involves cell spreading, migration, and proliferation, we investigated the effect of cyclic strain on cell area, cell-cell distance, and cell velocity at the wound edge. While the cell area increased in unstretched monolayers, the cell area of monolayers in compressed regions decreased significantly. Treatment with KGF increased the cell area in both cyclically elongated and compressed cells. Also, when cells were treated with KGF, cell velocity was significantly increased in both static and cyclically strained monolayers, and cyclic strain did not inhibit cell migration. These results suggest that KGF is an important factor in epithelial repair that is capable of overcoming the inhibition of repair due to physiological levels of cyclic strain.     

RhoA and Rac1 are both required for efficient wound closure of airway epithelial cells

Repair of the airway epithelium after injury is critical for restoring normal lung. The reepithelialization process involves spreading and migration followed later by cell proliferation. Rho-GTPases are key components of the wound healing process in many different types of tissues, but the specific roles for RhoA and Rac1 vary and have not been identified in lung epithelial cells. We investigated whether RhoA and Rac1 regulate wound closure of bronchial epithelial cells. RhoA and Rac1 proteins were efficiently expressed in a cell line of human bronchial epithelial cells (16HBE) by adenovirus-based gene transfer. We found that both constitutively active RhoA and dominant negative RhoA inhibited wound healing, suggesting that both activation and inhibition of RhoA interfere with normal wound healing. Overexpression of wild-type Rac1 induced upregulation of RhoA, disrupted intercellular junctions, and inhibited wound closure. Dominant negative Rac1 also inhibited wound closure. Inhibition of the downstream effector of RhoA, Rho-kinase, with Y-27632 suppressed actin stress fibers and focal adhesion formation, increased Rac1 activity, and stimulated wound closure. The activity of both RhoA and Rac1 are influenced by the polymerization state of microtubules, and cell migration involves coordinated action of actin and microtubules. Microtubule depolymerization upon nocodazole treatment led to an increase in focal adhesions and decreased wound closure. We conclude that coordination of both RhoA and Rac1 activity contributes to bronchial epithelial wound repair mechanisms in vitro, that inhibition of Rho-kinase accelerates wound closure, and that efficient repair involves intact microtubules.     

Dynamics of cell movement during the wound repair of human surface respiratory epithelium.

Epithelial wound repair represents an important process by which the epithelial barrier integrity recovers after wounding. To evaluate and quantify the dynamics of surface airway cell movement during the wound repair process, we developed an in vitro wounding model of human respiratory cells in culture and we analyzed the wound repair by using videomicroscopic and image analysis techniques. We observed that wound closure occurred within 6 hours, due to the spreading and migration of the cells surrounding the wounded surface. The migration rate of the cells at the leading edge of the wound surface increased progressively up to 26 microns/h during the repair process which was characterized by a uniform centripetal direction of cell movement. The distance travelled by these cells was 2.5 fold longer than the distance travelled by ciliated cells which were located far from the wound area. These results suggest that cell migration after wounding is an important process by which the respiratory epithelial barrier integrity is maintained.     

Activation of protein kinase A accelerates bovine bronchial epithelial cell migration

Bronchial epithelial cell migration is required for the repair of damaged airway epithelium. We hypothesized that bronchial epithelial cell migration during wound repair is influenced by cAMP and the activity of its cyclic nucleotide-dependent protein kinase, protein kinase A (PKA). We found that, when confluent monolayers of bronchial epithelial cells are wounded, an increase in PKA activity occurs. Augmentation of PKA activity with a cell-permeable analog of cAMP, dibutyryl adenosine 3',5'-cyclic monophosphate, isoproterenol, or a phosphodiesterase inhibitor accelerated migration of normal bronchial epithelial cells in in vitro wound closure assays and Boyden chamber migration assays. A role for PKA activity was also confirmed with a PKA inhibitor, KT-5720, which reduced stimulated migration. Augmentation of PKA activity reduced the levels of active Rho and the formation of focal adhesions. These studies suggest that PKA activation modulates Rho activity, migration mechanisms, and thus bronchial epithelial repair mechanisms.     

Hog barn dust slows airway epithelial cell migration in vitro through a PKCalpha-dependent mechanism

Agricultural work and other occupational exposures are responsible for approximately 15% of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). COPD involves airway remodeling in response to chronic lung inflammatory events and altered airway repair mechanisms. However, the effect of agricultural dust exposure on signaling pathways that regulate airway injury and repair has not been well characterized. A key step in this process is migration of airway cells to restore epithelial integrity. We have previously shown that agents that activate the critical regulatory enzyme protein kinase C (PKC) slow cell migration during wound repair. Based on this observation and direct kinase measurements that demonstrate that dust extract from hog confinement barns (HDE) specifically activates the PKC isoforms PKCalpha and PKCepsilon, we hypothesized that HDE would slow wound closure time in airway epithelial cells. We utilized the human bronchial epithelial cell line BEAS-2B and transfected BEAS-2B cell lines that express dominant negative (DN) forms of PKC isoforms to demonstrate that HDE slows wound closure in BEAS-2B and PKCepsilon DN cell lines. However, in PKCalpha DN cells, wound closure following HDE treatment is not significantly different than media-treated cells. These results suggest that the PKCalpha isoform is an important regulator of cell migration in response to agricultural dust exposure.     

Effects of corticosteroid-induced apoptosis on airway epithelial wound closure in vitro

Damage to the airway epithelium is common in asthma. Corticosteroids induce apoptosis in and suppress proliferation of airway epithelial cells in culture. Whether apoptosis contributes to impaired epithelial cell repair after injury is not known. We examined whether corticosteroids would impair epithelial cell migration in an in vitro model of wound closure. Wounds (approximately 0.5-1.3 mm2) were created in cultured 1HAEo- human airway epithelial cell monolayers, after which cells were treated with up to 10 microM dexamethasone or budesonide for 24 h. Cultured cells were pretreated for 24 or 48 h with dexamethasone to observe the effect of long-term exposure on wound closure. After 12 h, the remaining wound area in monolayers pretreated for 48 h with 10 microM dexamethasone was 43+/-18% vs. 10+/-8% for untreated control monolayers. The addition of either corticosteroid immediately after injury did not slow closure significantly. After 12 h the remaining wound area in monolayers treated with 10 microM budesonide was 39+/-4% vs. 43+/-3% for untreated control monolayers. The proportion of apoptotic epithelial cells as measured by terminal deoxynucleotidyltransferase-mediated dUTP biotin nick end labeling both at and away from the wound edge was higher in monolayers treated with budesonide compared with controls. However, wound closure in the apoptosis-resistant 1HAEo-.Bcl-2+ cell line was not different after dexamethasone treatment. We demonstrate that corticosteroid treatment before mechanical wounding impairs airway epithelial cell migration. The addition of corticosteroids after injury does not slow migration, despite their ability to induce apoptosis in these cells.     

Keratinocyte growth factor promotes cell motility during alveolar epithelial repair in vitro

Epithelia play a key role as protective barriers, and mechanisms of repair are crucial for restoring epithelial barrier integrity, especially in the lung. Cell spreading and migration are the first steps of reepithelialization. Keratinocyte growth factor (KGF) plays a key role in lung epithelial repair and protects against various injuries. We hypothesized that KGF may protect the lung not only by inducing proliferation but also by promoting epithelial repair via enhanced epithelial cell migration. In an in vitro wound-healing model, we found that KGF enhanced wound closure by 33%. KGF acted primarily by inducing lamellipodia emission (73.2 +/- 3.9% of KGF-treated cells had lamellipodia vs 61.3 +/- 3.4% of control cells) and increasing their relative surface area (59 +/- 2.7% with KGF vs 48 +/- 2.0% in controls). KGF reduced cytoskeleton stiffness as measured by magnetic twisting cytometry and increased cell motility (5.8 +/- 0.42 microm/h with KGF vs 3.7 +/- 0.41 microm/h in controls). KGF-increased cell motility was associated with increased fibronectin deposition during wound closure and with fibronectin reorganization into fibrils at the rear of the cells. Taken together, our findings strongly suggest that KGF may promote epithelial repair through several mechanisms involved in cell migration.     

Balance of life and death in alveolar epithelial type II cells: proliferation, apoptosis, and the effects of cyclic stretch on wound healing

After acute lung injury, repair of the alveolar epithelium occurs on a substrate undergoing cyclic mechanical deformation. While previous studies showed that mechanical stretch increased alveolar epithelial cell necrosis and apoptosis, the impact of cell death during repair was not determined. We examined epithelial repair during cyclic stretch (CS) in a scratch-wound model of primary rat alveolar type II (ATII) cells and found that CS altered the balance between proliferation and cell death. We measured cell migration, size, and density; intercellular gap formation; cell number, proliferation, and apoptosis; cytoskeletal organization; and focal adhesions in response to scratch wounding followed by CS for up to 24 h. Under static conditions, wounds were closed by 24 h, but repair was inhibited by CS. Wounding stimulated cell motility and proliferation, actin and vinculin redistribution, and focal adhesion formation at the wound edge, while CS impeded cell spreading, initiated apoptosis, stimulated cytoskeletal reorganization, and attenuated focal adhesion formation. CS also caused significant intercellular gap formation compared with static cells. Our results suggest that CS alters several mechanisms of epithelial repair and that an imbalance occurs between cell death and proliferation that must be overcome to restore the epithelial barrier.     

Inflammatory levels of nitric oxide inhibit airway epithelial cell migration by inhibition of the kinase ERK1/2 and activation of hypoxia-inducible factor-1 alpha

Increased synthesis of NO during airway inflammation, caused by induction of nitric-oxide synthase 2 in several lung cell types, may contribute to epithelial injury and permeability. To investigate the consequence of elevated NO production on epithelial function, we exposed cultured monolayers of human bronchial epithelial cells to the NO donor diethylenetriaamine NONOate. At concentrations generating high nanomolar levels of NO, representative of inflammatory conditions, diethylenetriaamine NONOate markedly reduced wound closure in an in vitro scratch injury model, primarily by inhibiting epithelial cell migration. Analysis of signaling pathways and gene expression profiles indicated a rapid induction of the mitogen-activated protein kinase phosphatase (MPK)-1 and decrease in extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK)1/2 activation, as well as marked stabilization of hypoxia-inducible factor (HIF)-1alpha and activation of hypoxia-responsive genes, under these conditions. Inhibition of ERK1/2 signaling using U0126 enhanced HIF-1alpha stabilization, implicating ERK1/2 dephosphorylation as a contributing mechanism in NO-mediated HIF-1alpha activation. Activation of HIF-1alpha by the hypoxia mimic cobalt chloride, or cell transfection with a degradation-resistant HIF-1alpha mutant construct inhibited epithelial wound repair, implicating HIF-1alpha in NO-mediated inhibition of cell migration. Conversely, NO-mediated inhibition of epithelial wound closure was largely prevented after small interfering RNA suppression of HIF-1alpha. Finally, NO-mediated inhibition of cell migration was associated with HIF-1alpha-dependent induction of PAI-1 and activation of p53, both negative regulators of epithelial cell migration. Collectively, our results demonstrate that inflammatory levels of NO inhibit epithelial cell migration, because of suppression of ERK1/2 signaling, and activation of HIF-1alpha and p53, with potential consequences for epithelial repair and remodeling during airway inflammation.     

Motogenic effect of recombinant HGF on airway epithelial cells during the in vitro wound repair of the respiratory epithelium

Cell migration is the earliest mechanism involved in the wound repair process of the respiratory epithelium and could be potentially enhanced by growth factors. In the present work, we investigated the localisation of the hepatocyte growth factor (HGF) receptor (c-Met) during wound repair and evaluated the effect of recombinant HGF (rHGF) on cell migration by using an in vitro model of airway epithelial wound repair. By using immunohistochemical methods, we observed that the immunoreactivity of the c-Met proto-oncogene was increased in epithelial cells engaged in the process of tissue repair. The incubation of wounded cultures with increasing concentrations of rHGF (0.2, 2, 20, and 200 ng/ml) induced a significant (P < 0.02) dose-dependent effect on the wound repair index, with a maximum effect produced at 20 ng/ml (+31.3%). The cell migration speed reached 50.2 micrometer/h at this concentration, compared to 20.4 micrometer/h in the absence of rHGF. No significant effect on cell proliferation was observed in the repairing area in the presence of rHGF. These results suggest that rHGF is able to improve the wound repair process of the airway epithelium by increasing cell migration.     

Prostaglandin E(2) regulates wound closure in airway epithelium

Repair of the airway epithelium after injury is critical for the maintenance of barrier function and the limitation of airway hyperreactivity. Airway epithelial cells (AECs) metabolize arachidonic acid to biologically active eicosanoids via the enzyme cyclooxygenase (COX). We investigated whether stimulating or inhibiting COX metabolites would affect wound closure in monolayers of cultured AECs. Inhibiting COX with indomethacin resulted in a dose-dependent inhibition of wound closure in human and feline AECs. Specific inhibitors for both COX-1 and COX-2 isoforms impaired wound healing. Inhibitors of 5-lipoxygenase did not affect wound closure in these cells. The addition of prostaglandin E(2) (PGE(2)) eliminated the inhibition due to indomethacin treatment, and the exogenous application of PGE(2) stimulated wound closure in a dose-dependent manner. Inhibition of COX with indomethacin only at initial time points resulted in a sustained inhibition of wound closure, indicating that prostanoids are involved in early wound repair processes such as spreading and migration. These differences in wound closure may be important if arachidonic acid metabolism and eicosanoid concentrations are altered in disease states such as asthma.     

Human endogenous antibiotic LL-37 stimulates airway epithelial cell proliferation and wound closure

Antimicrobial peptides are endogenous antibiotics that directly inactivate microorganisms and in addition have a variety of receptor-mediated functions. LL-37/hCAP-18 is the only cathelicidin found in humans and is involved in angiogenesis and regulation of the innate immune system. The aim of the present study was to characterize the role of the peptide LL-37 in the regulation of wound closure of the airway epithelium in the cell line NCI-H292 and primary airway epithelial cells. LL-37 stimulated healing of mechanically induced wounds in monolayers of the cell line and in differentiated primary airway epithelium. This effect was detectable at concentrations of 5 mug/ml in NCI-H292 and 1 mug/ml in primary cells. The effect of LL-37 on wound healing was dependent on the presence of serum. LL-37 induced cell proliferation and migration of NCI-H292 cells. Inhibitor studies in the wound closure and proliferation assays indicated that the effects caused by LL-37 are mediated through epidermal growth factor receptor, a G protein-coupled receptor, and MAP/extracellular regulated kinase. In conclusion, LL-37 induces wound healing, proliferation, and migration of airway epithelial cells. The peptide is likely involved in the regulation of tissue homeostasis in the airways.     

Integrin-β4 regulates the dynamic changes of phenotypic characteristics in association with epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) and RhoA activity in airway epithelial cells during injury and repair

Background: In airway disease such as asthma a hyperactive cellular event of epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) is considered as the mechanism of pathological airway tissue remodeling after injury to the airway epithelium. And the initiation of EMT in the airways depends on the epithelial disruption involving dissolution and/or destabilization of the adhesive structures between the cells and ECM. Previously, we have shown that integrin-β4, an epithelial adhesion molecule in bronchial epithelium is an important regulator of cell proliferation and wound repair in human airway epithelial cells. Therefore, in this study we aimed to investigate whether integrin-β4 also regulates EMT phenotypes during injury and repair in airway epithelial cells of both wild type/integrin-β4^-/- mice in vivo and cultured cells treated with integrin-β4/nonsense siRNA in vitro.Methods: We induced injury to the airway epithelial cells by either repeated exposure to ozone and mechanical scratch wound, and subsequently examined the EMT-related phenotypic features in the airway epithelial cells including biomarkers expression, adhesion and cytoskeleton reorganization and cell stiffness.Results: The results show that in response to injury (ozone exposure/scratch wound) and subsequent spontaneous repair (ozone withdrawal/wound healing) both in vivo and in vitro, the airway epithelial cells underwent dynamic changes in the epithelial and mesenchymal biomarkers expression, adhesion and cytoskeleton structures as well as cell stiffness, all together exhibiting enhanced EMT phenotypic features after injury and reversal of the injury-induced effects during repair. Importantly, these injury/repair-associated EMT phenotypic changes in airway epithelial cells appeared to be dependent on integrin-β4 expression. More specifically, when integrin-β4 was deficient in mice (integrin-β4^-/-) the repair of ozone-injured airway epithelium was impaired and the recovery of ozone-enhanced EMT biomarkers expression in the airway epithelium was delayed. Similarly, in the scratch wounded airway epithelial cells with integrin-β4 knockdown, the cells were impaired in all aspects related to EMT during wound and repair including cell proliferation, wound closure rate, adhesion and cytoskeleton protein expression (vinculin and vimentin), mesenchymal-like F-actin reorganization, cell stiffness and RhoA activation.Conclusion: Taken together, these results suggested that integrin-β4 may be essential in regulating the effects of injury and repair on EMT in airway epithelial cells via influencing both the cell adhesion to ECM and cells'' physical phenotypes through RhoA signaling pathway.     

Relaxin stimulates bronchial epithelial cell PKA activation,migration, and ciliary beating

Relaxin is an insulin-like serum protein secreted during pregnancy and found in many tissues, including the lung. Relaxin is reported to stimulate epithelial cell proliferation, but the effects of relaxin on airway epithelium are unknown. We tested the hypothesis that relaxin would stimulate the increased migration of bronchial epithelial cells (BEC) in response to wounding. Using monolayers of BEC in a wound-healing model, relaxin augmented wound closure with maximal closure occurring at 12 hr (1 micro M). Unlike cytokines, relaxin did not stimulate increased BEC interleukin-8 (IL-8) release. Relaxin caused a significant stimulation of ciliary beat frequency (CBF) in BEC. Because protein kinase (PKA) activation increases CBF and relaxin can elevate intracellular cAMP levels, we measured PKA activity in BEC treated with relaxin. Relaxin increased PKA activity 3-4 fold by approximately 4 hr, with a return to baseline levels by 8-10 hr. Relaxin-stimulated PKA activity differs temporally from the rapid (1 hr) beta-adrenergic activation of PKA in BEC. These data suggest that relaxin augments epithelial repair by increasing airway cell migration and CBF via PKA-dependent mechanisms.     

支架蛋白IQGAP1参与气道上皮细胞损伤修复过程

气道上皮损伤修复过程包括细胞延伸、迁移和增殖.IQGAP1 (IQ domain GTPase-activating protein 1)是一个在许多细胞生命活动中非常有意义的蛋白,但其在肺上皮细胞中的作用尚未阐述清楚.本文采用目前广泛应用的刮伤气道上皮细胞的体外模型来研究IQGAP1的功能.结果显示,IQGAP1在小鼠、大鼠、猪和人气道上皮细胞中有丰富表达.它与微管骨架共定位,可被微管解聚剂nocodazole破坏.刮伤6～9h后,IQGAP1 mRNA及蛋白表达上调.过表达外源性IQGAP1导致β-catenin核转位,从而活化Tcf/Lef信号.此外,刮伤还影响IQGAP1与β-catenin、结肠腺瘤病(adenomatous polyposis coli, APC)蛋白及细胞质连接蛋白-170 (cytoplasmic linker protein-170, CLIP-170)之间的相互作用.通过小干扰RNA (small interference RNA, siRNA)沉默IQGAP1表达则明显延迟损伤愈合.结果提示,IQGAP1信号参与气道上皮细胞损伤修复过程.     

Repair and regeneration of the airway epithelium

Despite an efficient defence system, the airway surface epithelium, in permanent contact with the external milieu, is frequently injured by inhaled pollutants, microorganisms and viruses. The response of the airway surface epithelium to an acute injury includes a succession of cellular events varying from the loss of the surface epithelium integrity to partial shedding of the epithelium or even to complete denudation of the basement membrane. The epithelium has then to repair and regenerate to restore its functions, through several mechanisms including basal cell spreading and migration, followed by proliferation and differentiation of epithelial cells. The cellular and molecular factors involved in wound repair and epithelial regeneration are closely interacting and imply extracellular matrix proteins, matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) and their inhibitors as well as cytokines and growth factors secreted by airway epithelial and mesenchymal cells. The development of in vitro and in vivo models of airway epithelium wound repair allowed the study of the spatio-temporal modulation of these factors during the different steps of epithelial repair and regeneration. In this context, several studies have demonstrated that the matrix and secretory environment are markedly involved in these mechanisms and that their dysregulation may induce remodelling of the airway mucosa. A better knowledge of the mechanisms involved in airway epithelium regeneration may pave the way to regenerative therapeutics allowing the reconstitution of a functional airway epithelium in numerous respiratory diseases such as asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary diseases, cystic fibrosis and bronchiolitis.     

A system to impose prescribed homogenous strains on cultured cells.

There is presently significant interest in cellular responses to physical forces, and numerous devices have been developed to apply stretch to cultured cells. Many of the early devices were limited by the heterogeneity of deformation of cells in different locations and by the high degree of anisotropy at a particular location. We have therefore developed a system to impose cyclic, large-strain, homogeneous stretch on a multiwell surface-treated silicone elastomer substrate plated with pulmonary epithelial cells. The pneumatically driven mechanism consists of four plates each with a clamp to fix one edge of the cruciform elastomer substrate. Four linear bearings set at predetermined angles between the plates ensure a constant ratio of principal strains throughout the stretch cycle. We present the design of the device and membrane shape, the surface modifications of the membrane to promote cell adhesion, predicted and experimental measurements of the strain field, and new data using cultured airway epithelial cells. We present for the first time the relationship between the magnitude of cyclic mechanical strain and the extent of wound closure and cell spreading.     

Keratinocyte growth factor can enhance alveolar epithelial repair by nonmitogenic mechanisms

Pretreatment with keratinocyte growth factor (KGF) ameliorates experimentally induced acute lung injury in rats. Although alveolar epithelial type II cell hyperplasia probably contributes, the mechanisms underlying KGF's protective effect remain incompletely described. Therefore, we tested the hypothesis that KGF given to rats in vivo would enhance alveolar epithelial repair in vitro by nonproliferative mechanisms. After intratracheal instillation (48 h) of KGF (5 mg/kg), alveolar epithelial type II cells were isolated for in vitro alveolar epithelial repair studies. KGF-treated cells had markedly increased epithelial repair (96 +/- 22%) compared with control cells (P < 0.001). KGF-treated cells had increased cell spreading and migration at the wound edge but no increase in in vitro proliferation compared with control cells. KGF-treated cells were more adherent to extracellular matrix proteins and polystyrene. Inhibition of the epidermal growth factor (EGF) receptor with tyrosine kinase inhibitors abolished the KGF effect on epithelial repair. In conclusion, in vivo administration of KGF augments the epithelial repair rate of alveolar epithelial cells by altering cell adherence, spreading, and migration and through stimulation of the EGF receptor.     

Airway epithelial wound repair: role of carbohydrate sialyl Lewisx

Epithelial repair is a complex cellular and molecular process, the details of which are still not clearly understood. Plasma membrane glycoconjugates can modulate cell function by altering the function of protein and lipids. Sialyl Lewisx (sLex), a fucose-containing tetrasaccharide, decorates membrane-bound and secreted proteins and mediates cell-cell interaction. In the present study we investigated the role of sLex in airway epithelial repair. Using immunohistochemistry, we showed an increased expression of sLex in areas of damaged bronchial epithelium compared with intact regions. Confluent monolayers of airway epithelial cells were mechanically wounded and allowed to close. Wounded monolayers were photographed for wound closure kinetics, fixed for immunocytochemical studies, or subjected to RNA extraction. Examining the expression of different alpha1,3-fucosyltransferases (FucT), enzymes that mediate the final step in the synthesis of sLex, we found that FucT-IV was the common gene expressed in all cell lines and primary airway epithelial cells. We demonstrated an increased expression of sLex over time after mechanical injury. Blocking of sLex with an inhibitory antibody completely prevented epithelial repair. Our data suggest an essential functional role for sLex in epithelial repair. Further studies are necessary to explore the exact mechanism for sLex in mediating cell-cell interaction in bronchial epithelial cells to facilitate epithelial migration and repair.     

PTEN inhibition improves wound healing in lung epithelia through changes in cellular mechanics that enhance migration

The phosphoinositide-3 kinase/Akt pathway is a vital survival axis in lung epithelia. We previously reported that inhibition of phosphatase and tensin homolog deleted on chromosome 10 (PTEN), a major suppressor of this pathway, results in enhanced wound repair following injury. However, the precise cellular and biomechanical mechanisms responsible for increased wound repair during PTEN inhibition are not yet well established. Using primary human lung epithelia and a related lung epithelial cell line, we first determined whether changes in migration or proliferation account for wound closure. Strikingly, we observed that cell migration accounts for the majority of wound recovery following PTEN inhibition in conjunction with activation of the Akt and ERK signaling pathways. We then used fluorescence and atomic force microscopy to investigate how PTEN inhibition alters the cytoskeletal and mechanical properties of the epithelial cell. PTEN inhibition did not significantly alter cytoskeletal structure but did result in large spatial variations in cell stiffness and in particular a decrease in cell stiffness near the wound edge. Biomechanical changes, as well as migration rates, were mediated by both the Akt and ERK pathways. Our results indicate that PTEN inhibition rapidly alters biochemical signaling events that in turn provoke alterations in biomechanical properties that enhance cell migration. Specifically, the reduced stiffness of PTEN-inhibited cells promotes larger deformations, resulting in a more migratory phenotype. We therefore conclude that increased wound closure consequent to PTEN inhibition occurs through enhancement of cell migration that is due to specific changes in the biomechanical properties of the cell.