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Glutathione Reductase Targeted to Type II Cells Does Not Protect Mice from Hyperoxic Lung Injury

¹ Center for Perinatal Research, The Research Institute at Nationwide Children's Hospital, Department of Pediatrics, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio

Correspondence and requests for reprints should be addressed to Stephen E. Welty, M.D., Center for Perinatal Research, The Research Institute at Nationwide Children's Hospital, Section of Neonatology, Department of Pediatrics, The Ohio State University, 700 Children's Drive, Columbus, OH 43205. E-mail: Stephen.Welty{at}nationwidechildrens.org

Exposure of the lung epithelium to reactive oxygen species without adequate antioxidant defenses leads to airway inflammation, and may contribute to lung injury. Glutathione peroxidase catalyzes the reduction of peroxides by oxidation of glutathione (GSH) to glutathione disulfide (GSSG), which can in turn be reduced by glutathione reductase (GR). Increased levels of GSSG have been shown to correlate negatively with outcome after oxidant exposure, and increased GR activity has been protective against hyperoxia in lung epithelial cells in vitro. We tested the hypothesis that increased GR expression targeted to type II alveolar epithelial cells would improve outcome in hyperoxia-induced lung injury. Human GR with a mitochondrial targeting sequence was targeted to mouse type II cells using the SPC promoter. Two transgenic lines were identified, with Line 2 having higher lung GR activities than Line 1. Both transgenic lines had lower lung GSSG levels and higher GSH/GSSG ratios than wild-type. Six-week-old wild-type and transgenic mice were exposed to greater than 95% O₂ or room air (RA) for 84 hours. After exposure, Line 2 mice had higher right lung/body weight ratios and lavage protein concentrations than wild-type mice, and both lines 1 and 2 had lower GSSG levels than wild-type mice. These findings suggest that GSSG accumulation in the lung may not play a significant role in the development of hyperoxic lung injury, or that compensatory responses to unregulated GR expression render animals more susceptible to hyperoxic lung injury.

Key Words: glutathione reductase • lung epithelium • hyperoxia • type II cells • mitochondria

CLINICAL RELEVANCE Mice with glutathione reductase targeted to the mitochondria of type II cells were more susceptible to hyperoxic lung injury, suggesting that glutathione disulfide accumulation in the lung may not play a significant role, or that compensatory responses render them more susceptible.