Document Type

Article

Publication Date

7-1-2018

Comments

This article has been peer reviewed. It is the author’s final published version in Journal of Surgical Research, Volume 227, July 2018, Pages 198-210.

The published version is available at https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jss.2018.02.012 . Copyright © Macarak et al.

Abstract

Background

Intra-abdominal adhesions are a major cause of morbidity after abdominal or gynecologic surgery. However, knowledge about the pathogenic mechanism(s) is limited, and there are no effective treatments. Here, we investigated a mouse model of bowel adhesion formation and the effect(s) of an Federal Drug Administration-approved drug (trametinib) in preventing adhesion formation.

Materials and methods

C57BL/6 mice were used to develop a consistent model of intra-abdominal adhesion formation by gentle cecal abrasion with mortality rates ofEDA) which arises from alternative splicing of the fibronectin messenger RNA resulting in different protein isoforms. Trichrome staining assessed collagen deposition. Quantitative polymerase chain reaction analysis of RNA isolated from adhesions by laser capture microscopy was carried out to assess pro-fibrotic gene expression. To block adhesion formation, trametinib was administered via a subcutaneous osmotic pump.

Results

Adhesions were seen as early as post-operative day 1 with extensive adhesions being formed and vascularized by day 5. The expression of the FNEDA isoform occurred first with subsequent expression of αSMA and collagen. The drug trametinib was chosen for in vivo studies because it effectively blocked the mesothelial to mesenchymal transition of rat mesothelium. Trametinib, at the highest dose used (3 mg/kg/d), prevented adhesion formation while at lower doses, adhesions were usually limited, as evidenced by the presence of FNEDA isoform but not αSMA.

Conclusions

Cecal abrasion in mice is a reliable model to study abdominal adhesions, which can be ameliorated using the MEK1/2 inhibitor trametinib. While blocking adhesion formation at the cell and molecular levels, trametinib, at the therapeutic doses utilized, did not impair the wound healing at the laparotomy site.

Creative Commons License

Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 License.

Language

English

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