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Wardhani K, Yazzie S, Edeh O, Grimes M, Dixson C, Jacquez Q, Zychowski KE. Neuroinflammation is dependent on sex and ovarian hormone presence following acute woodsmoke exposure. Sci Rep 2024; 14:12995. [PMID: 38844478 PMCID: PMC11156661 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-024-63562-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/04/2024] [Accepted: 05/30/2024] [Indexed: 06/09/2024] Open
Abstract
Woodsmoke (WS) exposure is associated with significant health-related sequelae. Different populations can potentially exhibit varying susceptibility, based on endocrine phenotypes, to WS and investigating neurological impacts following inhaled WS is a growing area of research. In this study, a whole-body inhalation chamber was used to expose both male and female C57BL/6 mice (n = 8 per group) to either control filtered air (FA) or acute WS (0.861 ± 0.210 mg/m3) for 4 h/d for 2 days. Neuroinflammatory and lipid-based biological markers were then assessed. In a second set of studies, female mice were divided into two groups: one group was ovariectomized (OVX) to simulate an ovarian hormone-deficient state (surgical menopause), and the other underwent Sham surgery as controls, to mechanistically assess the impact of ovarian hormone presence on neuroinflammation following FA and acute WS exposure to simulate an acute wildfire episode. There was a statistically significant impact of sex (P ≤ 0.05) and statistically significant interactions between sex and treatment in IL-1β, CXCL-1, TGF-β, and IL-6 brain relative gene expression. Hippocampal and cortex genes also exhibited significant changes in acute WS-exposed Sham and OVX mice, particularly in TGF-β (hippocampus) and CCL-2 and CXCL-1 (cortex). Cortex GFAP optical density (OD) showed a notable elevation in male mice exposed to acute WS, compared to the control FA. Sham and OVX females demonstrated differential GFAP expression, depending on brain region. Overall, targeted lipidomics in phosphatidylcholine (PC) and phosphatidylethanolamine (PE) serum and brain lipids demonstrated more significant changes between control FA and acute WS exposure in female mice, compared to males. In summary, male and female mice show distinct neuroinflammatory markers in response to acute WS exposure. Furthermore, ovarian hormone deficiency may impact the neuroinflammatory response following an acute WS event.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kartika Wardhani
- College of Nursing, University of New Mexico-Health Sciences Center, Albuquerque, NM, 87131, USA
- Biochemistry and Biotechnology (B-TEK) Group, Bioscience Division, Los Alamos National Laboratory, Los Alamos, NM, 87545, USA
| | - Sydnee Yazzie
- College of Nursing, University of New Mexico-Health Sciences Center, Albuquerque, NM, 87131, USA
| | - Onamma Edeh
- College of Nursing, University of New Mexico-Health Sciences Center, Albuquerque, NM, 87131, USA
| | - Martha Grimes
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, College of Pharmacy, University of New Mexico-Health Sciences Center, Albuquerque, NM, 87131, USA
| | - Connor Dixson
- College of Nursing, University of New Mexico-Health Sciences Center, Albuquerque, NM, 87131, USA
| | - Quiteria Jacquez
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, College of Pharmacy, University of New Mexico-Health Sciences Center, Albuquerque, NM, 87131, USA
| | - Katherine E Zychowski
- College of Nursing, University of New Mexico-Health Sciences Center, Albuquerque, NM, 87131, USA.
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Ray JL, Postma B, Kendall RL, Ngo MD, Foo CX, Saunders B, Ronacher K, Gowdy KM, Holian A. Estrogen contributes to sex differences in M2a macrophages during multi-walled carbon nanotube-induced respiratory inflammation. FASEB J 2024; 38:e23350. [PMID: 38071600 PMCID: PMC10752389 DOI: 10.1096/fj.202301571rr] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/03/2023] [Revised: 11/16/2023] [Accepted: 11/21/2023] [Indexed: 12/18/2023]
Abstract
Lung diseases characterized by type 2 inflammation are reported to occur with a female bias in prevalence/severity in both humans and mice. This includes previous work examining multi-walled carbon nanotube (MWCNT)-induced eosinophilic inflammation, in which a more exaggerated M2a phenotype was observed in female alveolar macrophages (AMs) compared to males. The mechanisms responsible for this sex difference in AM phenotype are still unclear, but estrogen receptor (ER) signaling is a likely contributor. Accordingly, male AMs downregulated ERα expression after MWCNT exposure while female AMs did not. Thus, ER antagonist Fulvestrant was administered prior to MWCNT instillation. In females, Fulvestrant significantly attenuated MWCNT-induced M2a gene expression and eosinophilia without affecting IL-33. In males, Fulvestrant did not affect eosinophil recruitment but reduced IL-33 and M2a genes compared to controls. Regulation of cholesterol efflux and oxysterol synthesis is a potential mechanism through which estrogen promotes the M2a phenotype. Levels of oxysterols 25-OHC and 7α,25-OHC were higher in the airways of MWCNT-exposed males compared to MWCNT-females, which corresponds with the lower IL-1β production and greater macrophage recruitment previously observed in males. Sex-based changes in cholesterol efflux transporters Abca1 and Abcg1 were also observed after MWCNT exposure with or without Fulvestrant. In vitro culture with estrogen decreased cellular cholesterol and increased the M2a response in female AMs, but did not affect cholesterol content in male AMs and reduced M2a polarization. These results reveal the modulation of (oxy)sterols as a potential mechanism through which estrogen signaling may regulate AM phenotype resulting in sex differences in downstream respiratory inflammation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jessica L. Ray
- Center for Environmental Health Sciences, University of Montana, Missoula, MT, USA
| | - Britten Postma
- Center for Environmental Health Sciences, University of Montana, Missoula, MT, USA
| | - Rebekah L. Kendall
- Center for Environmental Health Sciences, University of Montana, Missoula, MT, USA
| | - Minh Dao Ngo
- Mater Research Institute, Translational Research Institute, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia
| | - Cheng Xiang Foo
- Mater Research Institute, Translational Research Institute, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia
| | - Brett Saunders
- Division of Pulmonary, Critical Care and Sleep Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine, The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center, Davis Heart and Lung Research Institute, Columbus, Ohio, USA
| | - Katharina Ronacher
- Mater Research Institute, Translational Research Institute, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia
- Australian Infectious Diseases Research Centre, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia
| | - Kymberly M. Gowdy
- Division of Pulmonary, Critical Care and Sleep Medicine, Department of Internal Medicine, The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center, Davis Heart and Lung Research Institute, Columbus, Ohio, USA
| | - Andrij Holian
- Center for Environmental Health Sciences, University of Montana, Missoula, MT, USA
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Sveiven SN, Anesko K, Morgan J, Nair MG, Nordgren TM. Lipid-Sensing Receptor FFAR4 Modulates Pulmonary Epithelial Homeostasis following Immunogenic Exposures Independently of the FFAR4 Ligand Docosahexaenoic Acid (DHA). Int J Mol Sci 2023; 24:ijms24087072. [PMID: 37108233 PMCID: PMC10138935 DOI: 10.3390/ijms24087072] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/28/2023] [Revised: 03/31/2023] [Accepted: 04/05/2023] [Indexed: 04/29/2023] Open
Abstract
The role of pulmonary free fatty acid receptor 4 (FFAR4) is not fully elucidated and we aimed to clarify the impact of FFAR4 on the pulmonary immune response and return to homeostasis. We employed a known high-risk human pulmonary immunogenic exposure to extracts of dust from swine confinement facilities (DE). WT and Ffar4-null mice were repetitively exposed to DE via intranasal instillation and supplemented with docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) by oral gavage. We sought to understand if previous findings of DHA-mediated attenuation of the DE-induced inflammatory response are FFAR4-dependent. We identified that DHA mediates anti-inflammatory effects independent of FFAR4 expression, and that DE-exposed mice lacking FFAR4 had reduced immune cells in the airways, epithelial dysplasia, and impaired pulmonary barrier integrity. Analysis of transcripts using an immunology gene expression panel revealed a role for FFAR4 in lungs related to innate immune initiation of inflammation, cytoprotection, and immune cell migration. Ultimately, the presence of FFAR4 in the lung may regulate cell survival and repair following immune injury, suggestive of potential therapeutic directions for pulmonary disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stefanie N Sveiven
- Division of Biomedical Sciences, School of Medicine, University of California-Riverside, Riverside, CA 92521, USA
| | - Kyle Anesko
- Division of Biomedical Sciences, School of Medicine, University of California-Riverside, Riverside, CA 92521, USA
| | - Joshua Morgan
- Department of Bioengineering, Bourns College of Engineering, University of California-Riverside, Riverside, CA 92521, USA
| | - Meera G Nair
- Division of Biomedical Sciences, School of Medicine, University of California-Riverside, Riverside, CA 92521, USA
| | - Tara M Nordgren
- Department of Environmental and Radiological Health Sciences, Colorado State University, Fort Collins, CO 80523, USA
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