ELAVL1 promotes LPS-induced endothelial cells injury through modulation of cytokine storm

Sepsis is a life-threatening systemic organ dysfunction caused by the host's unregulated response to a widespread bacterial infection. Endothelial injury is a major pathophysiologic symptom of sepsis and is considered a critical factor in promoting the progression of disease severity. ELAV like RNA binding protein 1(ELAVL1) is a ubiquitously expressed RNA-binding protein that may play an important role during sepsis. Nonetheless, the molecular mechanisms of ELAVL1 on endothelial cell damage in sepsis have not been well defined. Here, we aimed to confirm the role of ELAVL1 in sepsis-induced endothelial cell damage using lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-induced zebrafish and endothelial cells (ECs) models. We found that zebrafish larvae treated with LPS exhibited systemic endothelial cell damage, mostly manifested as pericardial edema, curved tail, and impaired angiogenesis. LPS treatments also significantly induced the expression levels of inflammatory cytokines (interleukin-6 (IL-6), IL-8, and tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α) in vivo. In vitro, we observed the increase of ELAVL1 cytoplasmic translocation with LPS treatment. Mechanistically, targeted disruption of the ELAVL1 gene decreased the expression of TNF-α, IL-6, and IL-8 during induction of sepsis and alleviated LPS-induced blood vessel injury in zebrafish. Taken together, our study indicates that ELAVL1 knockdown may alleviate sepsis-induced endothelial cells injury by suppressing cytokine storm. Our research suggests that inhibition of ELAVL1 could reduce the level of inflammatory cytokine production induced by LPS and protect against endothelial cell injury. ELAVL1 might be a potential therapeutic target to block endothelial cells injury associated with sepsis.