Kechagia, JZ;
Ezra, DG;
Burton, MJ;
Bailly, M;
(2016)
Fibroblasts profiling in scarring trachoma identifies IL-6 as a functional component of a fibroblast-macrophage pro-fibrotic and pro-inflammatory feedback loop.
Scientific Reports
, 6
, Article 28261. 10.1038/srep28261.
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Abstract
Trachoma is a conjunctiva scarring disease, which is the leading infectious cause of blindness worldwide. Yet, the molecular mechanisms underlying progressive fibrosis in trachoma are unknown. To investigate the contribution of local resident fibroblasts to disease progression, we isolated conjunctival fibroblasts from patients with scarring trachoma and matching control individuals, and compared their gene expression profiles and functional properties in vitro. We show that scarring trachoma fibroblasts substantially differ from control counterparts, displaying pro-fibrotic and pro-inflammatory features matched by an altered gene expression profile. This pro-inflammatory signature was exemplified by increased IL-6 expression and secretion, and a stronger response to macrophage-mediated stimulation of contraction. We further demonstrate that scarring trachoma fibroblasts can promote Akt phosphorylation in macrophages in an IL-6 –dependent manner. Overall this work has uncovered a distinctive molecular fingerprint for scarring trachoma fibroblasts, and identified IL-6- as a potential contributor to the chronic conjunctival fibrosis, mediating reciprocal pro-fibrotic/pro-inflammatory interactions between macrophages and fibroblasts.
| Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Title: | Fibroblasts profiling in scarring trachoma identifies IL-6 as a functional component of a fibroblast-macrophage pro-fibrotic and pro-inflammatory feedback loop |
| Open access status: | An open access version is available from UCL Discovery |
| DOI: | 10.1038/srep28261 |
| Publisher version: | http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/srep28261 |
| Language: | English |
| Additional information: | This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. The images or other third party material in this article are included in the article’s Creative Commons license, unless indicated otherwise in the credit line; if the material is not included under the Creative Commons license, users will need to obtain permission from the license holder to reproduce the material. To view a copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ |
| Keywords: | Mesenchymal Stem-cells, Chlamydia-trachomatis, Conjunctival Transcriptome, Tensional Homeostasis, Pulmonary-fibrosis, Tissue, Contraction, Expression, Infection, Differentiation |
| UCL classification: | UCL UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Brain Sciences UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Brain Sciences > Institute of Ophthalmology |
| URI: | https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/1502547 |
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