Effect of irradiation/bone marrow transplantation on alveolar epithelial type II cells is aggravated in surfactant protein D deficient mice.

Irradiation followed by bone marrow transplantation (BM-Tx) is a frequent therapeutic intervention causing pathology to the lung. Although alveolar epithelial type II (AE2) cells are essential for lung function and are damaged by irradiation, the long-term consequences of irradiation and BM-Tx are not well characterized. In addition, it is unknown whether surfactant protein D (SP-D) influences the response of AE2 cells to the injurious events. Therefore, wildtype (WT) and SP-D(-/-) mice were subjected to a myeloablative whole body irradiation dose of 8 Gy and subsequent BM-Tx and compared with age- and sex-matched untreated controls. AE2 cell changes were investigated quantitatively by design-based stereology. Compared with WT, untreated SP-D(-/-) mice showed a higher number of larger sized AE2 cells and a greater amount of surfactant-storing lamellar bodies. Irradiation and BM-Tx induced hyperplasia and hypertrophy in WT and SP-D(-/-) mice as well as the formation of giant lamellar bodies. The experimentally induced alterations were more severe in the SP-D(-/-) than in the WT mice, particularly with respect to the surfactant-storing lamellar bodies which were sometimes extremely enlarged in SP-D(-/-) mice. In conclusion, irradiation and BM-Tx have profound long-term effects on AE2 cells and their lamellar bodies. These data may explain some of the clinical pulmonary consequences of this procedure. The data should also be taken into account when BM-Tx is used as an experimental procedure to investigate the impact of bone marrow-derived cells for the phenotype of a specific genotype in the mouse

The role of inducible nitric oxide synthase for interstitial remodeling of alveolar septa in surfactant protein D-deficient mice

Surfactant protein D (SP-D) modulates the lung's immune system. Its absence leads to NOS2-independent alveolar lipoproteinosis and NOS2-dependent chronic inflammation, which is critical for early emphysematous remodeling. With aging, SP-D knockout mice develop an additional interstitial fibrotic component. We hypothesize that this age-related interstitial septal wall remodeling is mediated by NOS2. Using invasive pulmonary function testing such as the forced oscillation technique and quasistatic pressure-volume perturbation and design-based stereology, we compared 29-wk-old SP-D knockout (Sftpd(-/-)) mice, SP-D/NOS2 double-knockout (DiNOS) mice, and wild-type mice (WT). Structural changes, including alveolar epithelial surface area, distribution of septal wall thickness, and volumes of septal wall components (alveolar epithelium, interstitial tissue, and endothelium) were quantified. Twenty-nine-week-old Sftpd(-/-) mice had preserved lung mechanics at the organ level, whereas elastance was increased in DiNOS. Airspace enlargement and loss of surface area of alveolar epithelium coexist with increased septal wall thickness in Sftpd(-/-) mice. These changes were reduced in DiNOS, and compared with Sftpd(-/-) mice a decrease in volumes of interstitial tissue and alveolar epithelium was found. To understand the effects of lung pathology on measured lung mechanics, structural data were used to inform a computational model, simulating lung mechanics as a function of airspace derecruitment, septal wall destruction (loss of surface area), and septal wall thickening. In conclusion, NOS2 mediates remodeling of septal walls, resulting in deposition of interstitial tissue in Sftpd(-/-). Forward modeling linking structure and lung mechanics describes the complex mechanical properties by parenchymatous destruction (emphysema), interstitial remodeling (septal wall thickening), and altered recruitability of acinar airspaces

Effect of irradiation/bone marrow transplantation on alveolar epithelial type II cells is aggravated in surfactant protein D deficient mice

Irradiation followed by bone marrow transplantation (BM-Tx) is a frequent therapeutic intervention causing pathology to the lung. Although alveolar epithelial type II (AE2) cells are essential for lung function and are damaged by irradiation, the long-term consequences of irradiation and BM-Tx are not well characterized. In addition, it is unknown whether surfactant protein D (SP-D) influences the response of AE2 cells to the injurious events. Therefore, wildtype (WT) and SP-D?/? mice were subjected to a myeloablative whole body irradiation dose of 8 Gy and subsequent BM-Tx and compared with age- and sex-matched untreated controls. AE2 cell changes were investigated quantitatively by design-based stereology. Compared with WT, untreated SP-D?/? mice showed a higher number of larger sized AE2 cells and a greater amount of surfactant-storing lamellar bodies. Irradiation and BM-Tx induced hyperplasia and hypertrophy in WT and SP-D?/? mice as well as the formation of giant lamellar bodies. The experimentally induced alterations were more severe in the SP-D?/? than in the WT mice, particularly with respect to the surfactant-storing lamellar bodies which were sometimes extremely enlarged in SP-D?/? mice. In conclusion, irradiation and BM-Tx have profound long-term effects on AE2 cells and their lamellar bodies. These data may explain some of the clinical pulmonary consequences of this procedure. The data should also be taken into account when BM-Tx is used as an experimental procedure to investigate the impact of bone marrow-derived cells for the phenotype of a specific genotype in the mouse

Turning on Single-Molecule Magnet Behavior in a Linear {Mn3} Compound

The synthesis, structure, and magnetic properties are reported for a new manganese compound with a mixed-valent {Mn3} core arranged in a linear fashion. The previously reported complex 1, [MnIV3(dpo)6]*2MeCN, where H2dpo is (E)-1-hydroxy-1,1-diphenylpropan-2-one oxime, served as a starting point for the isolation of a {Mn3} compound with an analogous core arrangement through the reaction of Mn-(OAc)2*4H2O, H3oxol ((E)-2,5-dihydroxy-2,5-dimethylhexan-3-one oxime), and NaOH in MeOH and MeCN. By using these reaction conditions, compound 2, Na[MnIV 2MnIII(Hoxol)6]n*MeOH*H2O, was successfully isolated revealing a central MnIII ion thereby introducing structural and magnetic anisotropy to the system. The structure of 2 reveals linear trinuclear MnIV−MnIII−MnIV units connected through Na+ ions forming a linear one-dimensional coordination polymer. The Jahn−Teller axes of each trinuclear unit are aligned parallel within the same chain and form a 75° angle between the two symmetry related chains. Magnetic susceptibility measurements of 1 and 2 in the temperature range 1.9−300 K reveal that only the reduced compound, 2, is a single-molecule magnet (SMM) largely due to the anisotropy introduced by the Jahn−Teller distortions on the MnIII ions, which effectively induce this magnet behavior. Weak antiferromagnetic interactions along the chains through the Na+ cations lead to a modulation of the intrinsic properties of the MnIV−MnIII−MnIV SMMs