TY - JOUR T1 - <em>Pseudomonas aeruginosa</em> accentuates epithelial to mesenchymal transition in the airway JF - European Respiratory Journal JO - Eur Respir J DO - 10.1183/09031936.00088410 SP - erj00884-2010 AU - L.A. Borthwick AU - S.S. Sunny AU - V. Oliphant AU - J. Perry AU - M. Brodlie AU - G.E. Johnson AU - C. Ward AU - K. Gould AU - P.A. Corris AU - A. De Soyza AU - A.J. Fisher Y1 - 2010/01/01 UR - http://erj.ersjournals.com/content/early/2010/09/16/09031936.00088410.abstract N2 - Epithelial to mesenchymal transition has been implicated in the dysregulated epithelial wound repair that contributes to obliterative bronchiolitis after lung transplant. Acquisition of Pseudomonas aeruginosa in the transplanted airway has been shown to be a risk factor for the development of obliterative bronchiolitis. We investigated the potential of Pseudomonas aeruginosa to drive epithelial to mesenchymal transition in primary bronchial epithelial cells isolated from lung transplant recipients.Changes in the expression of epithelial and mesenchymal markers was assessed in cells challenged with clinical isolates of Pseudomonas aeruginosa, or co-cultured with Pseudomonas aeruginosa activated monocytic cells (THP-1) in the presence or absence of TGF-β1.Pseudomonas aeruginosa did not drive or accentuate TGF-β1 driven epithelial to mesenchymal transition directly. Co-culturing Pseudomonas aeruginosa activated THP-1 cells with primary bronchial epithelial cells did not drive epithelial to mesenchymal transition. However, co-culturing Pseudomonas aeruginosa activated THP-1 cells with primary bronchial epithelial cells significantly accentuated TGF-β1 driven epithelial to mesenchymal transition.Pseudomonas aeruginosa, via the activation of monocytic cells, can accentuate TGF-β1 driven epithelial to mesenchymal transition. These in vitro observations may help explain the in vivo clinical observation of a link between acquisition of Pseudomonas aeruginosa and an increased risk of developing obliterative bronchiolitis. ER -