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McCracken JM, Calderon GA, Kumar LA, Balaji S, Rivas F, Erxleben D, Hall A, Hakim JC. Unveiling Vaginal Fibrosis: A Novel Murine Model Using Bleomycin and Epithelial Disruption. bioRxiv 2023:2023.12.18.572175. [PMID: 38187720 PMCID: PMC10769241 DOI: 10.1101/2023.12.18.572175] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/09/2024]
Abstract
Objective Develop, validate, and characterize a fibrotic murine vaginal wound healing model using bleomycin instillations and epithelial disruption. Approach We tested the effect of repeated bleomycin instillations with mucosal layer disruption on induction of vaginal fibrosis. Tissue samples collected at various time points were analyzed for fibrosis-related gene expression changes and collagen content. Results Low (1.5U/kg) and high-dose (2.5U/kg) bleomycin instillations alone did not induce fibrosis, but when high-dose bleomycin was combined with epithelial disruption, increased pro-fibrotic gene expression and trichrome staining were observed. To evaluate spatial and temporal changes in the ECM structure and gene expression, tissue samples were collected at 1 day, 3 weeks, and 6 weeks after bleomycin and epithelial disruption. Data analyses revealed a significant decrease in matrix metabolizing genes and an increase in pro-fibrotic genes and inhibitors of matrix metabolizing genes in the bleomycin plus epithelial disruption group at 3 weeks. Elevated levels of the profibrotic genes Acta2 , Col1a1 , and Col3a were exclusively detected in this group at 3 weeks, and trichrome staining confirmed increased collagen content after 3 weeks. Hydroxyproline levels showed a tendency towards elevation at 3 weeks (p=0.12) and 6 weeks (p=0.14), indicating fibrosis manifestation at 3 weeks and resolution by 6 weeks post-instillation and epithelial disruption. Innovation We combined bleomycin instillations with epithelial disruption to induce fibrosis and understand the mechanisms of the vaginal repair process. Conclusions Epithelial disruption combined with bleomycin induces murine vaginal fibrosis within three weeks, characterized by increased collagen synthesis. Remarkably, the vaginal tissue fully recovers within six weeks, elucidating the regenerative capacity of the vagina.
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de Jong IEM, Hunt ML, Chen D, Du Y, Llewellyn J, Gupta K, Li D, Erxleben D, Rivas F, Hall AR, Furth EE, Naji A, Liu C, Dhand A, Burdick JA, Davey MG, Flake AW, Porte RJ, Russo PA, Gaynor JW, Wells RG. A fetal wound healing program after intrauterine bile duct injury may contribute to biliary atresia. J Hepatol 2023; 79:1396-1407. [PMID: 37611641 PMCID: PMC10841314 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhep.2023.08.010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/20/2022] [Revised: 07/28/2023] [Accepted: 08/07/2023] [Indexed: 08/25/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND & AIMS Biliary atresia (BA) is an obstructive cholangiopathy that initially affects the extrahepatic bile ducts (EHBDs) of neonates. The etiology is uncertain, but evidence points to a prenatal cause. Fetal tissues have increased levels of hyaluronic acid (HA), which plays an integral role in fetal wound healing. The objective of this study was to determine whether a program of fetal wound healing is part of the response to fetal EHBD injury. METHODS Mouse, rat, sheep, and human EHBD samples were studied at different developmental time points. Models included a fetal sheep model of prenatal hypoxia, human BA EHBD remnants and liver samples taken at the time of the Kasai procedure, EHBDs isolated from neonatal rats and mice, and spheroids and other models generated from primary neonatal mouse cholangiocytes. RESULTS A wide layer of high molecular weight HA encircling the lumen was characteristic of the normal perinatal but not adult EHBD. This layer, which was surrounded by collagen, expanded in injured ducts in parallel with extensive peribiliary gland hyperplasia, increased mucus production and elevated serum bilirubin levels. BA EHBD remnants similarly showed increased HA centered around ductular structures compared with age-appropriate controls. High molecular weight HA typical of the fetal/neonatal ducts caused increased cholangiocyte spheroid growth, whereas low molecular weight HA induced abnormal epithelial morphology; low molecular weight HA caused matrix swelling in a bile duct-on-a-chip device. CONCLUSION The fetal/neonatal EHBD, including in human EHBD remnants from Kasai surgeries, demonstrated an injury response with prolonged high levels of HA typical of fetal wound healing. The expanded peri-luminal HA layer may swell and lead to elevated bilirubin levels and obstruction of the EHBD. IMPACT AND IMPLICATIONS Biliary atresia is a pediatric cholangiopathy associated with high morbidity and mortality rates; although multiple etiologies have been proposed, the fetal response to bile duct damage is largely unknown. This study explores the fetal pathogenesis after extrahepatic bile duct damage, thereby opening a completely new avenue to study therapeutic targets in the context of biliary atresia.
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Affiliation(s)
- Iris E M de Jong
- Section of Hepatobiliary Surgery and Liver Transplantation, Department of Surgery, University of Groningen, University Medical Center Groningen, Groningen, the Netherlands; Department of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Mallory L Hunt
- Division of Cardiothoracic Surgery, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Dongning Chen
- Department of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA; Department of Bioengineering, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA; Center for Engineering MechanoBiology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Yu Du
- Department of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA; Key Laboratory of Microgravity (National Microgravity Laboratory), Center of Biomechanics and Bioengineering, and Beijing Key Laboratory of Engineered Construction and Mechanobiology, Institute of Mechanics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Jessica Llewellyn
- Department of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Kapish Gupta
- Department of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - David Li
- Department of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Dorothea Erxleben
- Virginia Tech-Wake Forest University School of Biomedical Engineering and Sciences, Wake Forest School of Medicine, Winston-Salem, NC, USA
| | - Felipe Rivas
- Virginia Tech-Wake Forest University School of Biomedical Engineering and Sciences, Wake Forest School of Medicine, Winston-Salem, NC, USA
| | - Adam R Hall
- Virginia Tech-Wake Forest University School of Biomedical Engineering and Sciences, Wake Forest School of Medicine, Winston-Salem, NC, USA; Comprehensive Cancer Center, Wake Forest School of Medicine, Winston-Salem, NC, USA
| | - Emma E Furth
- Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Ali Naji
- Department of Surgery, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Chengyang Liu
- Department of Surgery, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Abhishek Dhand
- Department of Bioengineering, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Jason A Burdick
- Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, University of Colorado, Boulder, CO, USA
| | - Marcus G Davey
- The Center for Fetal Research, Department of Surgery, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Alan W Flake
- The Center for Fetal Research, Department of Surgery, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Robert J Porte
- Section of Hepatobiliary Surgery and Liver Transplantation, Department of Surgery, University of Groningen, University Medical Center Groningen, Groningen, the Netherlands
| | - Pierre A Russo
- Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - J William Gaynor
- Division of Cardiothoracic Surgery, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Rebecca G Wells
- Department of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA; Department of Bioengineering, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA; Center for Engineering MechanoBiology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA; Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA.
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Rivas F, Erxleben D, Smith I, Rahbar E, DeAngelis PL, Cowman MK, Hall AR. Methods for isolating and analyzing physiological hyaluronan: a review. Am J Physiol Cell Physiol 2022; 322:C674-C687. [PMID: 35196167 PMCID: PMC8977137 DOI: 10.1152/ajpcell.00019.2022] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/17/2022] [Revised: 02/22/2022] [Accepted: 02/22/2022] [Indexed: 01/01/2023]
Abstract
The carbohydrate hyaluronan (or hyaluronic acid, HA) is found in all human tissues and biofluids where it has wide-ranging functions in health and disease that are dictated by both its abundance and size. Consequently, hyaluronan evaluation in physiological samples has significant translational potential. Although the analytical tools and techniques for probing other biomolecules such as proteins and nucleic acids have become standard approaches in biochemistry, those available for investigating hyaluronan are less well established. In this review, we survey methods related to the assessment of native hyaluronan in biological specimens, including protocols for separating it from biological matrices and technologies for determining its concentration and molecular weight.
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Affiliation(s)
- Felipe Rivas
- Virginia Tech-Wake Forest University School of Biomedical Engineering and Sciences, Wake Forest School of Medicine, Winston-Salem, North Carolina
| | - Dorothea Erxleben
- Virginia Tech-Wake Forest University School of Biomedical Engineering and Sciences, Wake Forest School of Medicine, Winston-Salem, North Carolina
| | - Ian Smith
- Virginia Tech-Wake Forest University School of Biomedical Engineering and Sciences, Wake Forest School of Medicine, Winston-Salem, North Carolina
| | - Elaheh Rahbar
- Virginia Tech-Wake Forest University School of Biomedical Engineering and Sciences, Wake Forest School of Medicine, Winston-Salem, North Carolina
| | - Paul L DeAngelis
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
| | - Mary K Cowman
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, New York University Tandon School of Engineering, New York, New York
- Department of Orthopedic Surgery, New York University Grossman School of Medicine, New York, New York
| | - Adam R Hall
- Virginia Tech-Wake Forest University School of Biomedical Engineering and Sciences, Wake Forest School of Medicine, Winston-Salem, North Carolina
- Comprehensive Cancer Center, Wake Forest School of Medicine, Winston-Salem, North Carolina
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