Regulation of human pulmonary surfactant protein gene expression by 1 ,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3

Phokela, Sarabjit S., Sara Peleg, Fernando R. Moya, and Joseph L. Alcorn. Regulation of human pulmonary surfactant protein gene expression by 1 ,25-dihydroxyvitamin D3. Am J Physiol Lung Cell Mol Physiol 289: L617–L626, 2005. First published June 10, 2005; doi:10.1152/ajplung.00129.2004.—1 ,25-Dihydroxyvitamin D3 [1,25(OH)2D3] has been reported to stimulate lung maturity, alveolar type II cell differentiation, and pulmonary surfactant synthesis in rat lung. We hypothesized that 1,25(OH)2D3 stimulates expression of surfactant protein-A (SP-A), SP-B, and SP-C in human fetal lung and type II cells. We found that immunoreactive vitamin D receptor was detectable in fetal lung tissue and type II cells only when incubated with 1,25(OH)2D3. 1,25(OH)2D3 significantly decreased SP-A mRNA in human fetal lung tissue but did not significantly decrease SP-A protein in the tissue. In type II cells, 1,25(OH)2D3 alone had no significant effect on SP-A mRNA or protein levels but reduced SP-A mRNA and protein in a dose-dependent manner when the cells were incubated with cAMP. SP-A mRNA levels in NCI-H441 cells, a nonciliated bronchiolar epithelial (Clara) cell line, were decreased in a dose-dependent manner in the absence or presence of cAMP. 1,25(OH)2D3 had no significant effect on SP-B mRNA levels in lung tissue but increased SP-B mRNA and protein levels in type II cells incubated in the absence or presence of cAMP. Expression of SP-C mRNA was unaffected by 1,25(OH)2D3 in lung tissue incubated cAMP. These results suggest that regulation of surfactant protein gene expression in human lung and type II cells by 1,25(OH)2D3 is not coordinated; 1,25(OH)2D3 decreases SP-A mRNA and protein levels in both fetal lung tissue and type II cells, increases SP-B mRNA and protein levels only in type II cells, and has no effect on SP-C mRNA levels.