Docosahexaenoic Acid Controls Pulmonary Macrophage Lipid Raft Size and Inflammation.

Background: Docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) controls the biophysical organization of plasma membrane sphingolipid/cholesterol-enriched lipid rafts to exert anti-inflammatory effects, particularly in lymphocytes. However, the impact of DHA on the spatial arrangement of alveolar macrophage lipid rafts and inflammation is unknown.

Objectives: The primary objective was to determine how DHA controls lipid raft organization and function of alveolar macrophages.

Inhaled toxicants and pulmonary lipid metabolism: biological consequences and therapeutic interventions.

Inhaled toxicants drive the onset of and exacerbate preexisting chronic pulmonary diseases, however, the biological mechanisms by which this occurs are largely unknown. Exposure to inhaled toxicants, both environmental and occupational, drives pulmonary inflammation and injury. Upon activation of the inflammatory response, polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) are metabolized into predominately proinflammatory lipid mediators termed eicosanoids which recruit immune cells to the site of injury, perpetuating inflammation to clear the exposed toxicants.

Functional Characterization of Organoids Derived From Irreversibly Damaged Liver of Patients With NASH.

Background And Aims: NASH will soon become the leading cause of liver transplantation in the United States and is also associated with increased COVID-19 mortality. Currently, there are no Food and Drug Administration-approved drugs available that slow NASH progression or address NASH liver involvement in COVID-19. Because animal models cannot fully recapitulate human NASH, we hypothesized that stem cells isolated directly from end-stage liver from patients with NASH may address current knowledge gaps in human NASH pathology.