Project description:Our study shows that the aging lung microenvironment shapes the transcriptional phenotype of alveolar macrophages during aging. Except during acute injury when alveolar macrophage differentiation is incomplete, cellular ontogeny makes little difference in determining the transcriptional response of alveolar macrophages. Studies with parabiosis suggest the age-related changes in the alveolar microenvironment occur independently of circulating factors or cells. Our findings suggest that changes that target the microenvironment, for example metformin, senolytics or others might indirectly improve macrophage function during aging.
Project description:Our study shows that the aging lung microenvironment shapes the transcriptional phenotype of alveolar macrophages during aging. Except during acute injury when alveolar macrophage differentiation is incomplete, cellular ontogeny makes little difference in determining the transcriptional response of alveolar macrophages. Studies with parabiosis suggest the age-related changes in the alveolar microenvironment occur independently of circulating factors or cells. Our findings suggest that changes that target the microenvironment, for example metformin, senolytics or others might indirectly improve macrophage function during aging.
Project description:Alveolar macrophages maintain lung homeostasis and are critical for host defense to respiratory pathogens, including influenza virus. Yet how aging impacts alveolar macrophages remains unclear. Here, we found that aging reduces the proliferation and concentration of alveolar macrophages under basal conditions in mice. Transcriptomic analysis revealed that aging induces a down regulation in cell cycling pathways in alveolar macrophages. Functionally, aging impaired the capacity of alveolar macrophages to phagocytose in vivo, and also increased influenza virus-induced lung damage, morbidity and mortality. Depleting alveolar macrophages indicated that these cells were critical for accelerated mortality during influenza viral lung infection with aging. Adoptive transfer experiments demonstrated that aging impaired the ability of alveolar macrophages to reduce lung damage after influenza viral infection. Thus, our study has revealed that aging impairs alveolar macrophages to resolve damageand increases mortality after influenza viral infection.
Project description:comparison of Alveolar macrophge gene expression in wild type and PIKfyve ko We identifed gene that important for alveolar macrophage development