Abstract
Acute lung injury (ALI) is an acute respiratory failure that is associated with excessive neutrophil recruitment and high mortality. To assess the efficacy of 1-palmitoyl-2-linoleoyl-3-acetyl-rac-glycerol (PLAG) as a therapeutic agent for ALI, this compound was administered orally to mice challenged with an intranasal dose of lipopolysaccharide (LPS). Using this model, we found that PLAG promotes resolution of ALI through effective control of LPS-induced neutrophil infiltration, endothelial permeability, and inflammatory chemokine production. In addition, the Toll like Receptor 4 (TLR4) endocytosis/exocytosis cycle was significantly accelerated in Raw 264.7 cells co-treated with PLAG/LPS, as compared to cells treated only with LPS. During this cycle, a PLAG-induced exotoxin clearance pathway was observed to occur through the prompt assembly of nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate (NADPH) units and production of reactive oxygen species (ROS), which ultimately lead to earlier LPS clearance. We further detected reduced expression, as well as faster return to homeostatic levels, of macrophage inflammatory protein (MIP)-2, in PLAG/LPS- vs. LPS-treated cells. MIP-2 is a main inducer of neutrophil migration that is mainly controlled by interferon regulatory factor 3 (IRF3) activation and is involved in the TLR4 endosomal-signaling pathway. PLAG induced TLR4-mediated TRIF-related adaptor molecules/Toll-interleukin receptor (TIR) domain-containing adaptor protein including interferon (IFN)-β/IRF3 endosomal signaling, leading to rapid association of TRAM/TRIF and TLR4 and earlier IRF3 phosphorylation in PLAG/LPS-treated vs. LPS-treated cells. PLAG specificity was further verified with PLAG analogs and metabolites known to control excessive neutrophil infiltration, suggesting that this acetylated diacylglycerol has a unique biological role in neutrophil motility. Thus, our data indicate that PLAG may represent a potential therapeutic agent for resolution of LPS-induced lung inflammation through effective MIP-2 modulation.