title: The Protective Role of Autophagy in Human Vocal Fold Fibroblasts under Cigarette Smoke Extract Exposure: A New Insight into the Study of Reinke's Edema.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Reinke's edema (RE), one of the most common benign lesions of the human vocal folds, has been associated with cigarette smoking. We have observed an abundant number of autophagosomes in the cytoplasm of fibroblasts in the lamina propria of human vocal folds under transmission electron microscopy in RE tissue. Thus, we conducted a study about autophagy induced by cigarette smoke extract (CSE) exposure in cultured human vocal fold fibroblasts (hVFFs).
  
  
  METHODS
  Sampled tissues were cultured and exposed to varying levels of CSE. Immunochemistry staining and Western blot analyses were then performed on the cultures.
  
  
  RESULTS
  We demonstrated that CSE significantly promoted intracellular reactive oxygen species accumulation and reduced the viability of hVFFs in a concentration-dependent manner. Both immunocytochemistry and Western blot analysis showed increased expression of the autophagy marker type II-membrane-associated light chain 3 in fibroblasts following 24 h of CSE exposure, indicating the upregulation of autophagy activity. Furthermore, the results demonstrate that the induction of autophagy played a protective role in hVFFs exposed to CSE.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Autophagy can be induced by CSE in hVFFs, and it is a protective response of hVFFs to the exposure of CSE. This study provides a new insight into the process involved in the development of RE.
authors.affiliation: Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Head and Neck Surgery, Eye, Ear, Nose and Throat Hospital of Fudan University, Shanghai, China.
authors.forename: Jiajia
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: Rui
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Fang
authors.forename: Aaron
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Peterson
authors.forename: Jack J
authors.initials: JJ
authors.lastname: Jiang
mesh_terms: D001343:Autophagy; D015153:Blotting, Western; D002470:Cell Survival; D002478:Cells, Cultured; D005347:Fibroblasts / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology; D005434:Flow Cytometry; D006801:Humans; D007150:Immunohistochemistry; D007819:Laryngeal Edema / Q000209:etiology*; D007828:Laryngoscopy; D046529:Microscopy, Electron, Transmission; D012907:Smoking / Q000009:adverse effects* / Q000378:metabolism; D015854:Up-Regulation; D014827:Vocal Cords / Q000166:cytology*