title: Protection against Pseudomonas aeruginosa pneumonia and sepsis-induced lung injury by overexpression of beta-defensin-2 in rats.
abstract: Beta-defensin-2 (BD-2), a small cationic antimicrobial peptide, was first described to be an inducible defensin at the epithelial surfaces. In vitro studies have demonstrated that it may play a pivotal role in the anti-inflammatory immune response in addition to its antimicrobial activity. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of overexpression of BD-2 on lung injury to crudely investigate whether the function of BD-2 in the lung attributed to both antimicrobial action and modulation of the immune response. Recombinant adenovirus carrying an expression cassette of rat BD-2 or control adenovirus carrying empty vector was administered intratracheally to Sprague-Dawley rats 48 h before performing acute lung injury, which was induced either by Pseudomonas aeruginosa infection or by cecal ligation and double puncture (2CLP). In vivo antimicrobial activity of BD-2, histological changes of the lungs in both infectious and 2CLP models, pulmonary intracellular adhesion molecule-1 protein level, as well as the 7-day survival rate in the latter model were determined. Amounts of the P. aeruginosa in the lung with BD-2 overexpression were significantly lower compared with that in controls (2.87+/-0.76x10(4) colony-forming units [CFU]/mL vs. 2.49+/-0.74x10(6) CFU/mL, P<0.05). Overexpression of BD-2 reduced alveolar damage, interstitial edema, and infiltration of neutrophils in both models. Furthermore, in the 2CLP model, recombinant BD-2 not only significantly decreased protein levels of intracellular adhesion molecule-1 in lung tissue at 24, 36, and 72 h after 2CLP (P<0.05), but also significantly improved the survival of rats (P<0.05). The CFU of abdominal bacteria was comparable to that in the control rats (P>0.05). Therefore, overexpression of BD-2 protects against P. aeruginosa pneumonia and 2CLP-induced lung injury based on its antimicrobial and anti-inflammatory activities, respectively. Modulating the expression level of BD-2 may serve as an approach to attenuate lung injury.
authors.affiliation: Children's Hospital, School of Medicine and National Key Laboratory of Infection Disease, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China.
authors.forename: Qiang
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Shu
authors.forename: Zhuo
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Shi
authors.forename: ZhengYan
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Zhao
authors.forename: Zhi
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: HangPing
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Yao
authors.forename: QiXing
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: Andreas
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Hoeft
authors.forename: Frank
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Stuber
authors.forename: XiangMing
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Fang
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D019556:COS Cells; D002460:Cell Line; D002522:Chlorocebus aethiops; D015316:Genetic Therapy; D006801:Humans; D018410:Pneumonia, Bacterial / Q000473:pathology / Q000517:prevention & control*; D011552:Pseudomonas Infections / Q000473:pathology / Q000517:prevention & control*; D011550:Pseudomonas aeruginosa; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D018805:Sepsis / Q000473:pathology / Q000628:therapy*; D023083:beta-Defensins / Q000096:biosynthesis / Q000235:genetics*
chemical_list: D023083:beta-Defensins