Epigenetic regulation of EC-SOD expression in aging lung fibroblasts: Role of histone acetylation

Lung disorders characterized by fibroproliferation and excessive deposition of extracellular matrices occur in late adulthood, and their pathological manifestations become more prominent with aging. The exact mechanisms linking aging and fibroproliferative disorders are unknown, but increased oxidative stress resulting in the accumulation of damaged proteins, DNA, and lipids is considered a major factor. In the lung, and especially in the pulmonary fibroblasts, the extracellular superoxide dismutase (EC-SOD) is a major antioxidant enzyme that has been implicated in pulmonary fibrosing disorders, among others. Here, we investigate the regulation of EC-SOD in pulmonary lung fibroblasts derived from young (up to 3 month) and old (24 month) C57BL6 mice. We found that old fibroblasts have marginally elevated levels of reactive oxidant species (ROS), which coincides with attenuated expression a number of antioxidant enzymes including EC-SOD. Exposure of old fibroblasts to the DNA methyltransferase inhibitor 5-aza-dC did not restore expression of EC-SOD. On the other hand, repression of EC-SOD expression was associated with deacetylation of lysine 9 on histone H3 and lysines 5, 8, 12 and 16 on histone H4 located at the gene promoter. Interestingly, the repressive tri-methylation of lysine 27 on histone H3 was elevated in old compared to young fibroblasts. In addition, exposure of old lung fibroblasts to HDAC class 1 and class 2 inhibitors restored EC-SOD expression to the level observed in young fibroblasts. While the exact mechanism of age-dependent downregulation of EC-SOD is yet to be defined, our studies indicate a potential role of epigenetic mechanisms including histone deacetylation in this process.