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Role of glycogen synthase kinase 3 in squamous differentiation of pig airway epithelial cells: A primary study

CHEN Wen-Shu, WU Ren-Liang*, TIAN Dan, WANG Xi

Department of Pathology, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology

Abstract

To investigate if glycogen synthase kinase 3 (GSK3) is involved in squamous differentiation of airway (tracheobronchial) epithelial cells, primary pig airway epithelial cells were treated with lithium chloride, a highly selective inhibitor of GSK3. Change in morphology of cells was monitored under microscopy, and expression of b-catenin, phosphorylated GSK3 and involucrin, a squamous differentiation marker, were dectected by Western blotting, while expression of mRNA of another squamous differentiation marker, small proline-rich protein, was detected by RT-PCR. Further, luciferase reporter assay was used to assess the activation of β-catenin/Tcf signaling. The results demonstrated that lithium was able to induce a squamous morphology of the cells, and to enhance the expression of involucrin and small proline-rich protein mRNA. Moreover, lithium increased inhibitory phosphorylation of GSK3, augmented nuclear translocation of β-catenin in a dose- and time-dependent manner. Activation of β-catenin/Tcf signaling was observed after the elevation of squamous differentiation markers. Taken together, these data suggest that GSK3 is possibly involved in squamous differentiation of pig airway epithelial cells.

Key words: Glycogen synthase kinase 3;β-catenin;Squamous differentiation;Airway epithelial cell;Pig

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Citing This Article：

CHEN Wen-Shu, WU Ren-Liang*, TIAN Dan, WANG Xi . Role of glycogen synthase kinase 3 in squamous differentiation of pig airway epithelial cells: A primary study. Acta Physiol Sin 2005; 57 (4): (in Chinese with English abstract).