Tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinases 1 is involved in ROS-mediated inflammation via regulating matrix metalloproteinase 1 expression in the sea cucumber Apostichopus japonicus.

Tissue inhibitors of metalloproteinases (TIMPs) serve as matrix metalloproteinase (MMP) inhibitors in the pathogenesis of inflammatory diseases in vertebrates. We cloned and characterised the TIMP1 gene from Apostichopus japonicus using RACE approaches (designated as AjTIMP1). For Vibrio splendidus-challenged sea cucumbers, the peak expression of AjTIMP1 mRNAs in coelomocytes was detected at 24 h (23.44-fold) and remained at high levels (4.01-fold) until 72 h. Similarly, AjTIMP1 expression was upregulated in primary coelomocytes exposed to 10 μg mL LPS. AjTIMP1 was expressed in all tissues, and the highest expression was observed in the body wall. Functional investigation revealed an imbalance in the ratio of AjMMP1/AjTIMP1 in the skin ulceration syndrome (SUS) diseased group; it was sharply up-regulated to 3.97:1 compared with the healthy group. Furthermore, when AjTIMP1 was knocked down using small interfering RNA (siRNA-KD) to 0.4-fold, AjMMP1 and AjMMP19 were upregulated to 1.99- and 1.85-fold, respectively. AjTIMP1 siRNA-KD can promote ROS production by 26.2%, whereas AjMMP1 siRNA-KD can eliminate the increase in ROS. In inflamed tissues, collagen I and III levels were decreased by 33.1% and 33.6%, respectively, in the AjTIMP1 siRNA group at 24 h AjTIMP1 was involved in the inflammatory response by mediating ROS formation and collagen degradation.