IL-11 drives the phenotypic transformation of tracheal epithelial cells and fibroblasts to enhance abnormal repair after tracheal injury.

Tracheal stenosis (TS) is a multifactorial and heterogeneous disease that can easily lead to respiratory failure and even death. Interleukin-11 (IL-11) has recently received increased attention as a fibrogenic factor, but its function in TS is uncertain. This study aimed to investigate the role of IL-11 in TS regulation based on clinical samples from patients with TS and a rat model of TS produced by nylon brush scraping. Using lentiviral vectors expressing shRNA (lentivirus-shRNA) targeting the IL-11 receptor (IL-11Rα), we lowered IL-11Rα levels in the rat trachea. Histological and immunostaining methods were used to evaluate the effects of IL-11Rα knockdown on tracheal injury, molecular phenotype, and fibrosis in TS rats. We show that IL-11 was significantly elevated in circulating serum and granulation tissue in patients with TS. In vitro, TGFß1 dose-dependently stimulated IL-11 secretion from human tracheal epithelial cells (Beas-2b) and primary rat tracheal fibroblasts (PRTF). IL-11 transformed the epithelial cell phenotype to the mesenchymal cell phenotype by activating the ß-catenin pathway. Furthermore, IL-11 activated the atypical ERK signaling pathway, stimulated fibroblasts proliferation, and transformed fibroblasts into alpha-smooth muscle actin (α-SMA) positive myofibroblasts. IL-11-neutralizing antibodies (IL-11NAb) or ERK inhibitors (U0126) inhibited IL-11 activity and downregulated fibrotic responses involving TGFß/SMAD signaling. In vivo, IL-11Rα knockdown rats showed unobstructed tracheal lumen, relatively intact epithelial structure, and significantly reduced granulation tissue proliferation and collagen fiber deposition. Our findings confirm that IL-11 may be a target for future drug prevention and treatment of tracheal stenosis.

[Construction and preliminary panning of Fab phage display antibody library against respiratory syncytial virus].

OBJECTIVE: To construct a human phage display antibody library, which will help to develop new drugs and vaccines against respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) and solve many of the issues that have limited the progression and application of murine monoclonal antibodies (McAbs) in the clinic. This can provide a platform for human antibody preparation and diagnosis, prophylaxis and therapy of RSV infection in children. METHODS: Peripheral blood lymphocytes were isolated from 52 children with RSV infection. cDNA was synthesized from the total RNA of lymphocytes. The light and heavy chain Fd (VH-CH1) fragments of immunoglobulin gene were amplified by RT-PCR. The amplified products were cloned into phagemid vector pComb3x and the clone samples were electrotransformed into competent E.coli XL1-Blue. The transformed cells were then infected with M13K07 helper phage to yield recombinant phage antibody of Fabs. The plasmids extracted from amplified E.coli were digested with restriction endonucleases Sac I, Xba I, Spe I and Xho I to monitor the insertion of the light or heavy chain Fd genes. RSV virions were utilized as antigens to screen Fab antibodies. RESULTS: By recombination of light and heavy chain genes, an immune Fab phage display antibody library against RSV containing 2.08x10(7) different clones was constructed, in which 70% clones had light chains and heavy chain Fd genes. The capacity of Fab phage antibody gene library was 1.46x10(7) and the titre of the original Fab antibody library was about 1.06x10(12) pfu/mL. The antibody library gained an enrichment in different degrees after the preliminary panning. CONCLUSIONS: Utilizing the technology of phage display, an immune Fab phage display antibody library against RSV was successfully constructed in this study, which laid a valuable experimental foundation for further study and created favorable conditions for preparing human McAbs. This may also contribute to the improvement in the diagnosis, therapy and prophylaxis of RSV infection in children.