DAMPening COVID-19 Severity by Attenuating Danger Signals.

COVID-19 might lead to multi-organ failure and, in some cases, to death. The COVID-19 severity is associated with a "cytokine storm." Danger-associated molecular patterns (DAMPs) are proinflammatory molecules that can activate pattern recognition receptors, such as toll-like receptors (TLRs). DAMPs and TLRs have not received much attention in COVID-19 but can explain some of the gender-, weight- and age-dependent effects. In females and males, TLRs are differentially expressed, likely contributing to higher COVID-19 severity in males. DAMPs and cytokines associated with COVID-19 mortality are elevated in obese and elderly individuals, which might explain the higher risk for severer COVID-19 in these groups. Adenosine signaling inhibits the TLR/NF-κB pathway and, through this, decreases inflammation and DAMPs' effects. As vaccines will not be effective in all susceptible individuals and as new vaccine-resistant SARS-CoV-2 mutants might develop, it remains mandatory to find means to dampen COVID-19 disease severity, especially in high-risk groups. We propose that the regulation of DAMPs via adenosine signaling enhancement might be an effective way to lower the severity of COVID-19 and prevent multiple organ failure in the absence of severe side effects.

Circulating Histones in Sepsis: Potential Outcome Predictors and Therapeutic Targets.

Sepsis is defined as a life-threatening organ dysfunction caused by a dysregulated host response to infection and is associated with high morbidity and mortality. Circulating histones (CHs), a group of damage-associated molecular pattern molecules mainly derived from neutrophil extracellular traps, play a crucial role in sepsis by mediating inflammation response, organ injury and death through Toll-like receptors or inflammasome pathways. Herein, we first elucidate the molecular mechanisms of histone-induced inflammation amplification, endothelium injury and cascade coagulation activation, and discuss the close correlation between elevated level of CHs and disease severity as well as mortality in patients with sepsis. Furthermore, current state-of-the-art on anti-histone therapy with antibodies, histone-binding proteins (namely recombinant thrombomodulin and activated protein C), and heparin is summarized to propose promising approaches for sepsis treatment.

Neutrophil Extracellular Traps (NETs) and Damage-Associated Molecular Patterns (DAMPs): Two Potential Targets for COVID-19 Treatment.

COVID-19 is a pandemic disease caused by the new coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 that mostly affects the respiratory system. The consequent inflammation is not able to clear viruses. The persistent excessive inflammatory response can build up a clinical picture that is very difficult to manage and potentially fatal. Modulating the immune response plays a key role in fighting the disease. One of the main defence systems is the activation of neutrophils that release neutrophil extracellular traps (NETs) under the stimulus of autophagy. Various molecules can induce NETosis and autophagy; some potent activators are damage-associated molecular patterns (DAMPs) and, in particular, the high-mobility group box 1 (HMGB1). This molecule is released by damaged lung cells and can induce a robust innate immunity response. The increase in HMGB1 and NETosis could lead to sustained inflammation due to SARS-CoV-2 infection. Therefore, blocking these molecules might be useful in COVID-19 treatment and should be further studied in the context of targeted therapy.

Cyclosporin A Administration During Ex Vivo Lung Perfusion Preserves Lung Grafts in Rat Transplant Model.

BACKGROUND: Despite the benefits of ex vivo lung perfusion (EVLP) such as lung reconditioning, preservation, and evaluation before transplantation, deleterious effects, including activation of proinflammatory cascades and alteration of metabolic profiles have been reported. Although patient outcomes have been favorable, further studies addressing optimal conditions are warranted. In this study, we investigated the role of the immunosuppressant drug cyclosporine A (CyA) in preserving mitochondrial function and subsequently preventing proinflammatory changes in lung grafts during EVLP. METHODS: Using rat heart-lung blocks after 1-hour cold preservation, an acellular normothermic EVLP system was established for 4 hours. CyA was added into perfusate at a final concentration of 1 µM. The evaluation included lung graft function, lung compliance, and pulmonary vascular resistance as well as biochemical marker measurement in the perfusate at multiple time points. After EVLP, single orthotopic lung transplantation was performed, and the grafts were assessed 2 hours after reperfusion. RESULTS: Lung grafts on EVLP with CyA exhibited significantly better functional and physiological parameters as compared with those without CyA treatment. CyA administration attenuated proinflammatory changes and prohibited glucose consumption during EVLP through mitigating mitochondrial dysfunction in lung grafts. CyA-preconditioned lungs showed better posttransplant lung early graft function and less inflammatory events compared with control. CONCLUSIONS: During EVLP, CyA administration can have a preconditioning effect through both its anti-inflammatory and mitochondrial protective properties, leading to improved lung graft preservation, which may result in enhanced graft quality after transplantation.

Intracellular IL-1 Receptor Antagonist Isoform 1 Released from Keratinocytes upon Cell Death Acts as an Inhibitor for the Alarmin IL-1α.

The inflammatory effects of IL-1α/ß are controlled by IL-1R antagonist (IL-1Ra). One IL-1Ra isoform is secreted, whereas three other isoforms (intracellular IL-1Ra [icIL-1Ra] 1, 2, and 3) are supposed to remain intracellular because of the absence of a signal peptide. In contrast to the well-characterized function of the secreted isoform, the biological role of the intracellular isoforms remains largely unclear. icIL-1Ra1 represents the major isoform in keratinocytes. We created icIL-1Ra1-/- mice and investigated the role of icIL-1Ra1 in Aldara (5% imiquimod)-induced psoriasis-like skin inflammation. Naive icIL-1Ra1-/- mice bred habitually and exhibited a normal phenotype. icIL-1Ra1 deficiency aggravated Aldara-induced skin inflammation, as demonstrated by increased ear thickness and increased mRNA levels of key proinflammatory cytokines. No intracellular effect of icIL-1Ra1 could be detected in isolated keratinocytes using RNA-sequencing analysis; however, Aldara treatment led to caspase 1/11-, caspase 8-, and RIPK3-independent keratinocyte cell death accompanied by the release of both icIL-1Ra1 and IL-1α. Furthermore, blocking IL-1α attenuated the clinical severity of Aldara-induced ear thickening in icIL-1Ra1-/- mice. Our data suggest that upon keratinocyte damage icIL-1Ra1 acts extracellularly as an antagonist of the alarmin IL-1α to immediately counteract its inflammatory effects.

Circulating mitochondria in deceased organ donors are associated with immune activation and early allograft dysfunction.

Brain death that occurs in the setting of deceased organ donation for transplantation is associated with systemic inflammation of unknown origin. It has recently been recognized that mitochondria-derived damage-associated molecular patterns (mtDAMPs) released into the circulation in the setting of trauma and tissue injury are associated with a systemic inflammatory response. We examined the blood of deceased organ donors and found elevated levels of inflammatory cytokines and chemokines that correlated with levels of mtDAMPs. We also found that donor neutrophils are activated and that donor plasma contains a neutrophil-activating factor that is blocked by cyclosporin H, a formyl peptide receptor-1 antagonist. Examination of donor plasma by electron microscopy and flow cytometry revealed that free- and membrane-bound mitochondria are elevated in donor plasma. Interestingly, we demonstrated a correlation between donor plasma mitochondrial DNA levels and early allograft dysfunction in liver transplant recipients, suggesting a role for circulating mtDAMPs in allograft outcomes. Current approaches to prolong allograft survival focus on immune suppression in the transplant recipient; our data indicate that targeting inflammatory factors in deceased donors prior to organ procurement is another potential strategy for improving transplant outcomes.

Targeting Toll-like receptors with soluble Toll-like receptor 2 prevents peritoneal dialysis solution-induced fibrosis.

Peritoneal membrane failure due to fibrosis limits the use of peritoneal dialysis (PD). Peritoneal fibrosis may potentially be induced by sterile inflammation caused by ongoing cellular stress due to prolonged exposure to PD solutions (PDS). Effective therapies to prevent this process remain to be developed. Toll-like receptors (TLRs) mediate sterile inflammation by recognizing damage-associated molecular patterns (DAMPs) released by cellular stress. We evaluated the involvement of TLRs and DAMPs in PDS-induced fibrosis models and the therapeutic potential of TLR-DAMP targeting for preventing fibrosis. A range of PDS elicited pro-inflammatory and fibrotic responses from PD patient peritoneal leukocytes, mesothelial cells and mouse peritoneal leukocytes. TLR2/4 blockade of human peritoneal cells or TLR2/4 knockouts inhibited these effects. PDS did not induce rapid ERK phosphorylation or IκB-α degradation, suggesting that they do not contain components capable of direct TLR activation. However, PDS increased the release of Hsp70 and hyaluronan, both TLR2/4 DAMP ligands, by human and mouse peritoneal cells, and their blockade decreased PDS-driven inflammation. Soluble TLR2, a TLR inhibitor, reduced PDS-induced pro-inflammatory and fibrotic cytokine release ex vivo. Daily catheter infusion of PDS in mice caused peritoneal fibrosis, but co-administration of soluble TLR2 prevented fibrosis, suppressed pro-fibrotic gene expression and pro-inflammatory cytokine production, reduced leukocyte/neutrophil recruitment, recovered Treg cell levels and increased the Treg:Th17 ratio. Thus, TLR2/4, Hsp70 and hyaluronan showed major roles in PDS-induced peritoneal inflammation and fibrosis. The study demonstrates the therapeutic potential of a TLR-DAMP targeting strategy to prevent PDS-induced fibrosis.

Curcumin inhibits liver cancer by inhibiting DAMP molecule HSP70 and TLR4 signaling.

Curcumin has been revealed to inhibit liver cancer, however, no studies have reported that the mechanism of curcumin's action on liver cancer is related to damage-associated molecular pattern (DAMP) molecules heat shock protein 70 (HSP70) and the toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4) signaling. This study aimed to investigate whether the activation of TLR4 signaling by HSP70 could be inhibited by curcumin, thus investigating the possible mechanism of curcumin in the inhibition of liver cancer. Western blotting was used to evaluate the expression of the HSP70 and TLR4 in HepG2 cells and ELISA was used to detect the concentration of HSP70 in cell culture medium. A thermal tolerance HepG2 (HepG2TT) cell model was established to simulate HSP70 accumulation in the microenvironment. A certain concentration of curcumin was co-cultured with HepG2 and HepG2TT cells to observe the changes of HSP70 and TLR4. Our results revealed that heat stress significantly increased the expression of extracellular HSP70 (eHSP70) and TLR4 (P<0.01), but significantly reduced the expression of intracellular HSP70 (P<0.01). Curcumin inhibited proliferation, invasion, and metastasis of HepG2 cells, caused cells to remain in the DNA S phase, promoted apoptosis, and significantly reduced intracellular HSP70, eHSP70 and TLR4 levels of HepG2TT cells. Following the removal of curcumin, eHSP70 increased again. In summary, our results demonstrated that the antitumor effect of curcumin was related to the inhibition HSP70-TLR4 signaling.

Inhibition of DAMP signaling as an effective adjunctive treatment strategy in pneumococcal meningitis.

BACKGROUND: Pneumococcal meningitis remains a potentially lethal and debilitating disease, mainly due to brain damage from sustained inflammation. The release of danger-associated molecular patterns (DAMPs), like myeloid-related protein 14 (MRP14) and high mobility group box 1 protein (HMGB1), plays a major role in persistence of inflammation. In this study, we evaluated if paquinimod, an MRP14-inhibitor, and an anti-HMGB1 antibody can improve clinical outcome as adjunctive therapeutics in pneumococcal meningitis. METHODS: We tested the adjuvant administration of paquinimod and the anti-HMGB1 antibody in our pneumococcal meningitis mouse model assessing clinical (clinical score, open-field-test, temperature) and pathophysiological parameters (intracranial pressure, white blood cell count in CSF, bleeding area) as well as bacterial titers in blood and brain 24 h after administration and 48 h after infection. Furthermore, we explored the interactions of these two agents with dexamethasone, the standard adjuvant treatment in pneumococcal meningitis (PM), and daptomycin, a non-bacteriolytic antibiotic preventing pathogen-associated molecular pattern (PAMP) release. RESULTS: Adjunctive inhibition of MRP14 or HMGB1 reduced mortality in mice with PM. This effect was lost when the two anti-DAMP agents were given simultaneously, possibly due to excessive immunosuppression. Combining anti-PAMP (daptomycin) and anti-DAMP treatments did not produce synergistic results; instead, the anti-DAMP treatment alone was sufficient and superior. The combination of anti-HMGB1 with dexamethasone did not diminish the effect of the former. CONCLUSIONS: DAMP inhibition possesses good potential as an adjuvant treatment approach in PM, as it improves clinical outcome and can be given together with the standard adjuvant dexamethasone without drug effect loss in experimental PM.