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Pathophysiological changes and injury markers for acute lung injury from blunt impact in infant rabbits
Ke Wang1,2, ZhenPeng Huang3, JiaWei He2
1Department of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, The First Affiliated Hospital of Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, Shaanxi Province, China.
Insights
Blunt chest impacts in infant rabbits caused lung injury and inflammation. Surfactant protein A (SP-A) levels decreased after injury but rose in serum, suggesting it may be a biomarker for pediatric blunt lung trauma.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Traumatology
- Pulmonary Medicine
- Biomarker Discovery
Background:
- Traffic accidents are a leading cause of serious injury in children, with blunt impacts frequently leading to severe trauma.
- Acute lung injury in pediatric populations necessitates the identification of reliable indicators for early detection and management.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the inflammatory and injury responses in infant rabbits following acute lung injury induced by blunt chest impact.
- To identify potential circulatory biomarkers for pediatric blunt lung trauma.
Main Methods:
- Infant rabbits (4-week-old) were subjected to blunt chest impact using a Hopkinson bar.
- Computed tomography assessed injury severity, while histological analysis (H&E staining) evaluated pathological changes.
- Immunohistochemistry and ELISA measured surfactant protein A (SP-A), interleukin-6 (IL-6), and interleukin-8 (IL-8) levels in lung tissue and serum.
Main Results:
- Blunt impact led to increased white blood cell counts and neutrophil percentages, with significant lung edema.
- Surfactant protein A (SP-A) levels decreased in lung tissues and bronchi but increased in serum post-injury.
- Interleukin-6 (IL-6) and interleukin-8 (IL-8) showed decreasing trends in serum at 24 hours post-injury.
Conclusions:
- Surfactant protein A (SP-A) levels demonstrated a correlation with pathological changes in infant rabbits after blunt lung injury.
- SP-A may serve as a potential circulatory biomarker for assessing the severity of pediatric blunt lung trauma, even in cases without rib fractures.
Background:
Traffic accidents, particularly blunt impacts, cause serious injuries in children. We aimed to assess inflammatory and injury responses in infant rabbits subjected to acute lung injury resulting from blunt impact, with the goal of identifying potential circulatory injury markers.
Methods:
Forty 4-week-old infant rabbits were subjected to a right chest impact using a Hopkinson bar with 2,600 g. Computed tomography was employed to assess injury severity. Pathological changes were observed using hematoxylin and eosin staining in the control, 0, 24, and 72 h groups, post-injury. Immunohistochemistry was used to examine surfactant protein A (SP-A) changes in right lung tissues and upper main bronchi. Serum levels of interleukin-6 (IL-6), IL-8, and SP-A were measured using ELISA within 24 h post-injury in the control, 0 h, and 24 h groups.
Results:
Following blunt injury, significant increases were observed in blood white blood cell count (F = 101.556, P < 0.01) and neutrophil percentage (F = 104.228, P < 0.01), which gradually decreased after 24 and 72 h. The lung wet/dry weight ratio indicated significant edema (F = 79.677, P < 0.01), corroborated by hematoxylin and eosin staining showing edema, exudation, and marked granulocyte infiltration in the control, 0 h, 24 h and 72 h groups. SP-A levels decreased rapidly at 0 h, and recovered between 24 and 72 h in the right lung tissues (F = 6.7, P < 0.05), left lung (F = 15.825, P < 0.05) and upper main bronchi (F = 59.552, P < 0.01). The ELISA results showed increasing trends for the control and 0 h groups, while decreasing trends were observed in 24 h group for IL-6 (F = 58.328, P < 0.01) and IL-8 (F = 41.802, P < 0.01). Conversely, SP-A exhibited a decreasing trend in the control and 0 h groups but increased in the serum of 24 h group (F = 52.629, P < 0.01).
Discussion:
In cases of direct chest trauma in infant rabbits, particularly mild injuries without rib fractures. SP-A levels correlated with pathological changes across all groups and may serve as biomarkers for pediatric blunt lung impact.
