Inducing Acute Lung Injury in Mice by Direct Intratracheal Lipopolysaccharide Instillation

Summary

Presented here is a step-by-step procedure to induce acute lung injury in mice by direct intratracheal lipopolysaccharide instillation and to perform FACS analysis of blood samples, bronchoalveolar lavage fluid, and lung tissue. Minimal invasiveness, simple handling, good reproducibility, and titration of disease severity are advantages of this approach.

Abstract

Airway administration of lipopolysaccharide (LPS) is a common way to study pulmonary inflammation and acute lung injury (ALI) in small animal models. Various approaches have been described, such as the inhalation of aerosolized LPS as well as nasal or intratracheal instillation. The presented protocol describes a detailed step-by-step procedure to induce ALI in mice by direct intratracheal LPS instillation and perform FACS analysis of blood samples, bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) fluid, and lung tissue. After intraperitoneal sedation, the trachea is exposed and LPS is administered via a 22 G venous catheter. A robust and reproducible inflammatory reaction with leukocyte invasion, upregulation of proinflammatory cytokines, and disruption of the alveolo-capillary barrier is induced within hours to days, depending on the LPS dosage used. Collection of blood samples, BAL fluid, and lung harvesting, as well as the processing for FACS analysis, are described in detail in the protocol. Although the use of the sterile LPS is not suitable to study pharmacologic interventions in infectious diseases, the described approach offers minimal invasiveness, simple handling, and good reproducibility to answer mechanistic immunological questions. Furthermore, dose titration as well as the use of alternative LPS preparations or mouse strains allow modulation of the clinical effects, which can exhibit different degrees of ALI severity or early vs. late onset of disease symptoms.

Introduction

Experimental animal models are indispensable in basic immune research. Administration of whole bacteria or microbial components has been frequently used in small animal models to induce local or systemic inflammation¹. Lipopolysaccharide (LPS, or bacterial endotoxin) is a cell wall component and surface antigen of gram-negative bacteria (e.g., Enterobacteriaceae, Pseudomonas spp., or Legionella spp.). The thermostable and large molecule (molecular weight 1-4 x 10⁶ kDa) consists of a lipid moiety (Lipid A), core region (oligosaccharide), and an O polysaccharide (or O antigen). Lipid A, with its hydrophobic fatty acid chains, anchors t....

Protocol

This animal protocol was approved by the local committee for animal care (LANUV, Recklinghausen, Germany; protocol no. 84-02.04.2015) and was performed in accordance with the National Institutes of Health guidelines for the use of live animals (NIH publication No. 85-23, revised 1996).

1. ALI induction

1. Use adult C57BL/6 mice at ages of about 10-12 weeks. House the animals in individually ventilated cages with free access to water and standard rodent chow. However, it is possible to perform this approach on younger animals and with other mice strains.
2. Store LPS (Escherichia coli O111:B4) in aliquots in concent....

Results

The described approach to induce ALI in mice was validated by assessing cytokine expression, neutrophil granulocyte infiltration, and alveolo-capillary barrier disruption 24 h and 72 h after LPS instillation. PBS-injected animals served as control. Intratracheal LPS administration induced a robust pulmonary proinflammatory response. Expression of TNF-α in lung tissue was significantly upregulated, reaching a sustained and more than 50-fold increase compared to the control animals [RQ (TNF-α/18s); 24 h: 53.7 (SD = 11.6); .......

Discussion

Minimal invasiveness, simple handling, and good reproducibility are key features of the presented approach to induce ALI in a small rodent model. The use of LPS instead of whole bacteria in animal models has advantages. It is a stable and pure compound and can be stored in lyophilized form until use. It is a potent stimulant for innate immune responses via the TLR4 pathway, and its biological activity may readily be quantified, facilitating the titration of disease severity with good reproducibility. Moreover, the use of.......

Materials

List of materials used in this article

Name	Company	Catalog Number	Comments
1 ml syringes	BD, Franklin Lakes, NJ, USA	300013
10 ml syringes	BD, Franklin Lakes, NJ, USA	309110
Anti-CD115 (c-fms) APC	Thermo Fisher, Waltham, MA, USA	17-1152-80
Anti-CD11b (M1/70) - FITC	Thermo Fisher, Waltham, MA, USA	11-0112-81
Anti-CD45 (30-F11) - eF450	Thermo Fisher, Waltham, MA, USA	48-0451-82
Anti-F4/80 (BM-8) - PE Cy7	Thermo Fisher, Waltham, MA, USA	25-4801-82
Anti-Gr1 (RB6-8C5)	BD Biosciences, Franklin Lakes, NJ, USA	552093
Anti-Ly6C (HK1.4) PerCP-Cy5.5	Thermo Fisher, Waltham, MA, USA	45-5932-82
Anti-Ly6G (1A8) APC/Cy7	Bio Legend, San Diego, CA	127623
Buprenorphine hydrochloride	Indivior UK Limited, Berkshire, UK
C57BL/6 mice, female, 10 - 12 weeks old	Charles River, Wilmongton, MA, USA
CaliBRITE APC-beads (6µm)	BD Biosciences, Franklin Lakes, NJ, USA	340487
Canula 23 gauge 1''	BD, Franklin Lakes, NJ, USA	300800
Canula 26 gauge 1/2''	BD, Franklin Lakes, NJ, USA	303800
Cell strainer 70 µm	BD Biosciences, Franklin Lakes, NJ, USA	352350
Collagenase Type I	Sigma-Aldrich, St. Louis, MO, USA	1148089
Deoxyribonuclease II	Sigma-Aldrich, St. Louis, MO, USA	D8764
Dulbecco's Phosphate Buffered Saline (PBS), sterile	Sigma-Aldrich, St. Louis, MO, USA	D8662
Dulbecco’s Phosphate Buffered Saline (PBS), without calcium chloride and magnesium chloride, sterile	Sigma-Aldrich, St. Louis, MO, USA	D8537
Ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA) solution	Sigma-Aldrich, St. Louis, MO, USA	E7889
FACS tubes, 5 ml	Sarstedt, Nümbrecht, Germany	551579
Fetal calf serum (FCS)	Sigma-Aldrich, St. Louis, MO, USA	F2442
Forceps	Fine Science Tools, Heidelberg, Germany	11049-10
Isoflurane	Baxter, Unterschleißheim, Germany
Ketamine hydrochloride	Serumwerk Bernburg, Bernburg, Germany
Lipopolysaccharides (LPS) from Escherichia coli O111:B4	Sigma-Aldrich, St. Louis, MO, USA	L2630
LIVE/DEAD Fixable Dead Cell Green Kit	Thermo Fisher, Waltham, MA, USA	L23101
Purified Rat Anti-Mouse CD16/CD32 (Mouse BD Fc Block™), Clone 2.4G2	BD, Franklin Lakes, NJ, USA	553141
Red blood cell lysis buffer	Thermo Fisher, Waltham, MA, USA	00-4333-57
RPMI-1640, with L-glutamine and sodium bicarbonate	Sigma-Aldrich, St. Louis, MO, USA	R8758
Scissors	Fine Science Tools, Heidelberg, Germany	14060-09
Sodium azide (NaN3)	Sigma-Aldrich, St. Louis, MO, USA	S2002
Spring scissors	Fine Science Tools, Heidelberg, Germany	15018-10
Tissue forceps	Fine Science Tools, Heidelberg, Germany	11021-12
Tubes	Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany	30125150
Venous catheter, 22 gauge	B.Braun, Melsungen, Germany	4268091B
Xylazine hydrochloride	Serumwerk Bernburg, Bernburg, Germany