Periostin knockout mice are protected from house dust mite allergen-induced lung inflammation [abstract].Am

In bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD), alveolar septae are thickened with collagen and a-smooth muscle actin, transforming growth factor (TGF)-b-positive myofibroblasts. Periostin, a secreted extracellular matrix protein, is involved in TGF-b-mediated fibrosis and myofibroblast differentiation. We hypothesized that periostin expression is required for hypoalveolarization and interstitial fibrosis in hyperoxia-exposed neonatal mice, an animal model for this disease. We also examined periostin expression in neonatal lung mesenchymal stromal cells and lung tissue of hyperoxia-exposed neonatal mice and human infants with BPD. Two-to-three day-old wild-type and periostin null mice were exposed to air o