Saheb Sharif-Askari Narjes, Mdkhana Bushra, Hafezi Shirin, Elamin Ola Faisal, Eladham Mariam Wed, Al-Sheakly Baraa Khalid Salah, Halwani Hala, Saheb Sharif-Askari Fatemeh, Halwani Rabih
Research Institute for Medical and Health Sciences, University of Sharjah, Sharjah, United Arab Emirates.
Department of Clinical Sciences, College of Medicine, University of Sharjah, Sharjah, United Arab Emirates.
Inflammopharmacology. 2025 May 17. doi: 10.1007/s10787-025-01771-5.
Respirable silica exposure adversely affects lung tissue immunopathology, triggering oxidative bursts in macrophages and neutrophils, releasing Damage-associated molecular patterns (DAMPs), including calprotectin proteins, S100A8, and S100A9. Calprotectin constitutes up to 45% of these innate immune cells, and serum levels of these alarmins correlate with inflammation, fibrosis, remodelling, and drug response in chronic diseases, including inflammatory bowel disease, asthma, and cystic fibrosis. The consequence of releasing calprotectin protein could trigger the pro-fibrotic effect of silicosis. This study aimed to investigate the role of calprotectin (S100A8/S100A9) as a pro-inflammatory and pro-fibrotic mediator in silica-induced lung fibrosis and evaluated the therapeutic potential of the calprotectin inhibitor, paquinimod. Using a mouse model of silicosis, silica exposure significantly elevated calprotectin expression, lung inflammation, and fibrosis, as evidenced by increased levels of epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT) markers, collagen deposition, and matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs). In vitro, stimulation of human bronchial fibroblasts with S100A8/S100A9 upregulated fibrotic markers (COL1A1 and α-SMA), which were reduced by inhibitors of TLR4 and RAGE receptors, as well as by paquinimod. Treatment with paquinimod effectively reduced these pathological changes, normalized calprotectin levels, decreased fibrosis scores, and attenuated NF-κB activation. These findings highlighted calprotectin's pivotal role in silica-induced lung fibrosis and inflammation, suggesting that its inhibition could be a promising therapeutic approach for silicosis and other fibro-inflammatory lung diseases. Further research is warranted to explore the precise mechanisms linking calprotectin to lung fibrosis and its potential as a biomarker and therapeutic target.
可吸入二氧化硅暴露会对肺组织免疫病理学产生不利影响,引发巨噬细胞和中性粒细胞的氧化爆发,释放损伤相关分子模式(DAMPs),包括钙卫蛋白、S100A8和S100A9。钙卫蛋白占这些固有免疫细胞的比例高达45%,这些警报素的血清水平与包括炎症性肠病、哮喘和囊性纤维化在内的慢性疾病中的炎症、纤维化、重塑和药物反应相关。释放钙卫蛋白的后果可能引发矽肺的促纤维化作用。本研究旨在探讨钙卫蛋白(S100A8/S100A9)作为二氧化硅诱导的肺纤维化中促炎和促纤维化介质的作用,并评估钙卫蛋白抑制剂帕喹莫德的治疗潜力。使用矽肺小鼠模型,二氧化硅暴露显著提高了钙卫蛋白的表达、肺部炎症和纤维化,上皮-间质转化(EMT)标志物水平升高、胶原蛋白沉积和基质金属蛋白酶(MMPs)增加证明了这一点。在体外,用S100A8/S100A9刺激人支气管成纤维细胞会上调纤维化标志物(COL1A1和α-SMA),TLR4和RAGE受体抑制剂以及帕喹莫德可降低这些标志物。帕喹莫德治疗有效减轻了这些病理变化,使钙卫蛋白水平正常化,降低了纤维化评分,并减弱了NF-κB激活。这些发现突出了钙卫蛋白在二氧化硅诱导的肺纤维化和炎症中的关键作用,表明抑制钙卫蛋白可能是治疗矽肺和其他纤维炎性肺病的有前景的治疗方法。有必要进一步研究以探索将钙卫蛋白与肺纤维化联系起来的精确机制及其作为生物标志物和治疗靶点的潜力。
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