Abstract
Bronchopulmonary dysplasia, a common complication of prematurity, is characterized by inadequate alveolarization. The process of alveolarization, by which the lung forms mature gas-exchanging units, is not well understood. In mice, alveolarizaion occurs during postnatal days four through twelve, when the formation of secondary septa creates thin walled alveoli. The purpose of this study was to investigate the genes involved in this process. RNA was isolated from dissected tips of secondary septa and whole lung tissue of day six postnatal mouse lung. The tips of secondary septa were obtained via laser capture microscopy of frozen sections. Total RNA was isolated from the tip and whole lung samples and amplified in the same manner. Affymetrix gene profiling was then performed, using mouse U74Av2 GeneChips. The signal for galectin-1 mRNA was six fold higher in the secondary septal tips than in whole lung tissue (p<0.05). Galectins, or S-type lectins, are beta-galactoside-binding proteins involved in the regulation of cell proliferation, differentiation and apoptosis. Galectin-1 is a homodimer of two 14 kDa subunits. It is the most abundant galectin in the lung. To confirm the relative abundance of galectin-1 in secondary septal tips versus whole lung, immunostaining of sections of day six postnatal and adult mouse lung tissue was performed. Staining for galectin-1 was concentrated in the tips of the secondary septa in the day six postnatal tissue. Furthermore, staining was dramatically increased in the day six mouse lung tissue when compared to staining levels in the adult lung sections. Immunoblot analysis of lung homogenates obtained at different stages of lung development demonstrated that a peak of galectin-1 expression occurs at postnatal days six and twelve, corresponding to the time of alveolarization. The increased expression of galectin-1 at the site and time of ongoing alveolarization suggests that it may play a role in this important aspect of lung development. Supported by NIH grants HL-62861 and HL-07638.
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Foster, J., Snyder, J. Galectin-1 Expression is Increased in The Secondary Alveolar Tips of Mouse Lung.. Pediatr Res 56, 667 (2004). https://doi.org/10.1203/00006450-200410000-00026
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1203/00006450-200410000-00026
