Systemic blockade of P2X7 receptor protects against sepsis-induced intestinal barrier disruption.

Abstract

Sepsis, during which the intestinal epithelial barrier is frequently disrupted, remains a challenging and life-threatening problem in clinical practice. The P2X7 receptor (P2X7R) is a non-selective adenosine triphosphate-gated cation channel present in macrophages that is involved in inflammatory responses. However, little is known about the role of P2X7R in macrophages during sepsis-induced intestinal barrier disruption. In this study, mice were treated with the P2X7R antagonist A740003 or the agonist BzATP by intra-peritoneal injection after the induction of gut-origin sepsis. The survival rates, inflammatory responses, intestinal barrier integrity, macrophage marker expression, and ERK and NF-κB activities were evaluated. Intestinal macrophages were also isolated and studied after exposure to Brilliant Blue G or BzATP. We found that a systemic P2X7R blockade downregulated sepsis-induced inflammatory responses and attenuated intestinal barrier dysfunction based on the evidence that mice in the A740003-treated group exhibited alleviated pro-inflammatory cytokine synthesis, intestinal hyperpermeability, epithelial apoptosis rates and tight junction damage compared with the septic mice. These changes were partly mediated by the inhibition of M1 macrophages activation via ERK/NF-κB pathways. Our data presented herein show that a P2X7R blockade could be a potential therapeutic target for the treatment of sepsis-induced intestinal barrier dysfunction.

• Authors: Xiuwen Wu, Jianan Ren, Guopu Chen, Lei Wu, Xian Song, Guanwei Li, Youming Deng, Gefei Wang, Guosheng Gu, Jieshou Li
• Journal: Scientific reports (Sci Rep) Vol. 7 Issue 1 Pg. 4364 (06 29 2017) ISSN: 2045-2322 [Electronic] England
• PMID: 28663567 (Publication Type: Journal Article, Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't)

Chemical References

• (N-(1-(((cyanoimino)(5-quinolinylamino) methyl) amino)-2,2-dimethylpropyl)-2-(3,4-dimethoxyphenyl)acetamide)
• Acetamides
• Cytokines
• Inflammation Mediators
• Protective Agents
• Purinergic P2X Receptor Antagonists
• Quinolines
• Receptors, Purinergic P2X7
• Tight Junction Proteins

Topics

• Acetamides (pharmacology)
• Animals
• Apoptosis (drug effects)
• Cytokines (metabolism)
• Disease Models, Animal
• Inflammation Mediators (metabolism)
• Intestinal Mucosa (drug effects, metabolism, pathology)
• Mice
• Protective Agents (pharmacology)
• Purinergic P2X Receptor Antagonists (pharmacology)
• Quinolines (pharmacology)
• Receptors, Purinergic P2X7 (metabolism)
• Sepsis (drug therapy, etiology, metabolism, pathology)
• Tight Junction Proteins (metabolism)
• Tight Junctions (drug effects, metabolism, ultrastructure)