Project description:PKC-δ inhibition with the selective inhibitor, rottlerin, resulted in potent downregulation of type I collagen expression and production in normal human dermal fibroblasts and abrogated the exaggerated type I collagen production and expression in fibroblasts cultured from affected skin from patients with the fibrosing disorder, systemic sclerosis (SSc). To elucidate the mechanisms involved in the ability of PKC-δ to regulate collagen production in fibroblasts, we examined the effects of PKC-δ inhibition on the transcriptome of normal and SSc-derived human dermal fibroblasts. We used microarrays to detail the effects of PKC-δ inhibition with rottlerin on the transcriptome of normal and SSc-derived human dermal fibroblasts and to identify gene networks that might be involved in the regulation of extracellular matrix by PKC-δ.
Project description:Expression data from normal human fibroblasts expressing prelamin A or progerin, untreated or treated with farnesyltransferase inhibitor (FTI)
Project description:Human BJ fibroblasts were treated with FLI-06 and gene expression was compared to untreated fibroblasts. RNA-seq data comprises 2 groups: treated and untreated BJ fibroblasts. Jena Centre for Systems Biology of Ageing - JenAge (www.jenage.de)
Project description:The response to a 4 hour treatment with TGFbeta (4 ng/ml) was evaluated in lung fibroblasts derived from three controls (normal periphery of resected tumor), open lung biopsies from three patients with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (usual interstitial pneumonia pattern on biopsy) and from three patients with fibrosing alveolitis associated with systemic sclerosis (fibrotic non specific interstitial pneumonia pattern on biopsy). Lung fibroblasts were grown to confluence in DMEM with 10% fetal calf serum. At confluence, lung fibroblasts were serum-deprived overnight, and exposed to either 4 ng/ml of activated TGF-Ã1 (R&D Systems) or serum-free culture medium with 0.1% BSA for four hours.
Project description:Fibroblasts are polymorphic cells with pleiotropic roles in organ morphogenesis, tissue homeostasis and immune responses. In fibrotic diseases, fibroblasts synthesize abundant amounts of extracellular matrix which lead to scaring and organ failure. In sharp contrast, the hallmark feature of fibroblasts in arthritis is matrix degradation by the release of metalloproteinases and degrading enzymes, and subsequent tissue destruction. The mechanisms driving these functionally opposing pro-fibrotic and pro-inflammatory phenotypes of fibroblasts are enigmatic. We have compared resting, fibrotic, and inflammatory fibroblasts; PU.1 was overexpressed in dermal fibroblasts and compared to scr-transfected controls. Fibrotic fibroblasts isolated from the skin of patients with systemic sclerosis were treated with PU.1 inhibitor and compared to untreated fibrotic fibroblasts and respective healthy controls. Through this, we identified the transcription factor PU.1 as an essential orchestrator of the pro-fibrotic gene expression program. The interplay between transcriptional and post-transcriptional mechanisms which normally control PU.1 expression is perturbed in fibrotic diseases such as pulmonary fibrosis, systemic sclerosis, liver cirrhosis, kidney fibrosis and chronic graft-versus-host disease, resulting in upregulation of PU.1, the induction of fibrosis-associated gene sets, and a phenotypic switch in matrix-producing pro-fibrotic fibroblasts. In contrast, inactivation of PU.1 disrupts the fibrotic network and enables re-programming of fibrotic fibroblasts into resting fibroblasts with regression of fibrosis in different organs. Targeting of PU.1 may thus represent a novel therapeutic approach for the treatment of a wide range of fibrotic diseases.
Project description:TGFβ1 is a profibrotic mediator that contributes to a broad spectrum of pathologies, including pulmonary fibrosis (PF). However, the secretome of TGFβ1-stimulated primary human normal lung (NL) fibroblasts has not been well characterized. Using fluorescent 2-dimensional gel electrophoresis (2D-PAGE) and differential gel electrophoresis (DIGE), we identified 37 differentially secreted proteins in the conditioned media of TGFβ1-activated NL fibroblasts and generated a protein-protein association network of the TGFβ1 secretome using STRING. Functional enrichment revealed that biological processes and pathways characteristics of PF were enriched. Using the DrugBank database, we determined that 32 of the secreted proteins are targets of known experimental, investigational and approved drugs. Additionally, by comparing the TGFβ1 secretome of NL fibroblasts to proteomic biomarkers from biological fluids of systemic sclerosis (SSc) patients, we identified 11 overlapping proteins. Together our data validate the TGFβ1-induced secretome of NL fibroblasts as a valid in vitro model that reflects SSc biomarkers and identifies potential therapeutic targets for SSc-PF.
Project description:Pulmonary fibrosis develops as a consequence of environmentally induced lung injury and/or an inherent disease susceptibility causing fibroblast activation, proliferation and extracellular matrix deposition. The study was undertaken to characterise global gene expression in pulmonary fibroblasts to better understand the mechanisms underlying the fibrotic fibroblast phenotype. Gene expression was evaluated in lung fibroblasts derived from ten controls (normal periphery of resected tumor), open lung biopsies from eight patients with interstitial lung disease associated with systemic sclerosis (fibrotic non specific interstitial pneumonia pattern on biopsy), and from three patients with usual interstitial pneumonia. Lung fibroblasts were grown to confluence in DMEM with 10% fetal calf serum. At confluence, lung fibroblasts were serum-deprived for 44 hours in the presence of fibroblast growth medium with the addition of 0.1% bovine serum albumin (Sigma).
Project description:Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and primary lateral sclerosis are two syndromic variants within the motor neurone disease spectrum. Whilst primary lateral sclerosis is associated with loss of upper motor neurons and a more benign disease course up to 17yrs, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis is caused by loss of both upper and lower motor neurons and has an average disease course of 2-3 years. The majority of cases are sporadic, thereby limiting the availability of cellular models for investigating pathogenic disease mechanisms. The aim of the present study was to evaluate fibroblasts as a cellular model for sporadic amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and primary lateral sclerosis, to establish whether disease-related dysregulated biological processes recapitulate those seen in the central nervous system and to elucidate pathways that distinguish between the two disease phenotypes. We used microarray analysis to determine the differences in gene expression between fibroblasts derived from skin biopsies taken from sporadic amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and primary lateral sclerosis neurologically normal human controls
Project description:The response to a 4 hour treatment with TGFbeta (4 ng/ml) was evaluated in lung fibroblasts derived from three controls (normal periphery of resected tumor), open lung biopsies from three patients with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (usual interstitial pneumonia pattern on biopsy) and from three patients with fibrosing alveolitis associated with systemic sclerosis (fibrotic non specific interstitial pneumonia pattern on biopsy). Lung fibroblasts were grown to confluence in DMEM with 10% fetal calf serum. At confluence, lung fibroblasts were serum-deprived overnight, and exposed to either 4 ng/ml of activated TGF-ß1 (R&D Systems) or serum-free culture medium with 0.1% BSA for four hours. Keywords: other