Department of Veterinary Biomedical Sciences, College of Veterinary Medicine, Long Island University, Brookville, NY 11548, USA.
Shandong Public Health Clinical Center, Shandong University, Jinan 250013, China.
Cells. 2024 Aug 31;13(17):1465. doi: 10.3390/cells13171465.
Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is a chronic inflammatory disorder in the intestines without a cure. Current therapies suppress inflammation to prevent further intestinal damage. However, healing already damaged intestinal epithelia is still an unmet medical need. Under physiological conditions, Lgr5 intestinal stem cells (ISCs) in the intestinal crypts replenish the epithelia every 3-5 days. Therefore, understanding the regulation of Lgr5 ISCs is essential. Previous data suggest vitamin D signaling is essential to maintain normal Lgr5 ISC function in vivo. Our recent data indicate that to execute its functions in the intestines optimally, 1,25(OH)D requires high concentrations that, if present systemically, can cause hypercalcemia (i.e., blood calcium levels significantly higher than physiological levels), leading to severe consequences. Using 5-bromo-2'-deoxyuridine (BrdU) to label the actively proliferating ISCs, our previous data suggested that de novo synthesized locally high 1,25(OH)D concentrations effectively enhanced the migration and differentiation of ISCs without causing hypercalcemia. However, although sparse in the crypts, other proliferating cells other than Lgr5 ISCs could also be labeled with BrdU. This current study used high-purity Lgr5 ISC lines and a mouse strain, in which Lgr5 ISCs and their progeny could be specifically tracked, to investigate the effects of de novo synthesized locally high 1,25(OH)D concentrations on Lgr5 ISC function. Our data showed that 1,25(OH)D at concentrations significantly higher than physiological levels augmented Lgr5 ISC differentiation in vitro. In vivo, de novo synthesized locally high 1,25(OH)D concentrations significantly elevated local 1α-hydroxylase expression, robustly suppressed experimental colitis, and promoted Lgr5 ISC differentiation. For the first time, this study definitively demonstrated 1,25(OH)D's role in Lgr5 ISCs, underpinning 1,25(OH)D's promise in IBD therapy.
炎症性肠病(IBD)是一种慢性肠道炎症性疾病,目前尚无治愈方法。目前的治疗方法是抑制炎症以防止进一步的肠道损伤。然而,治愈已经受损的肠道上皮仍然是一个未满足的医疗需求。在生理条件下,肠道隐窝中的 Lgr5 肠道干细胞(ISCs)每 3-5 天补充一次上皮细胞。因此,了解 Lgr5 ISC 的调节机制至关重要。先前的数据表明,维生素 D 信号对体内维持正常 Lgr5 ISC 功能至关重要。我们最近的数据表明,为了在肠道中最佳地发挥其功能,1,25(OH)D 需要高浓度,如果在全身存在,会导致高钙血症(即血液中钙水平显著高于生理水平),导致严重后果。使用 5-溴-2'-脱氧尿苷(BrdU)标记活跃增殖的 ISCs,我们之前的数据表明,局部新合成的高浓度 1,25(OH)D 可有效增强 ISC 的迁移和分化,而不会导致高钙血症。然而,尽管在隐窝中稀疏存在,但除了 Lgr5 ISC 之外,其他增殖细胞也可以用 BrdU 标记。本研究使用高纯度 Lgr5 ISC 系和一种小鼠品系,其中 Lgr5 ISC 及其后代可以特异性追踪,以研究局部新合成的高浓度 1,25(OH)D 对 Lgr5 ISC 功能的影响。我们的数据表明,浓度显著高于生理水平的 1,25(OH)D 在体外增强了 Lgr5 ISC 的分化。在体内,局部新合成的高浓度 1,25(OH)D 显著上调局部 1α-羟化酶的表达,强烈抑制实验性结肠炎,并促进 Lgr5 ISC 的分化。本研究首次明确证实了 1,25(OH)D 在 Lgr5 ISC 中的作用,为 1,25(OH)D 在 IBD 治疗中的应用提供了依据。