AUTHOR=Kong Xiaoxia , Lu Liling , Lin Daopeng , Chong Lei , Wen Shunhang , Shi Yaokai , Lin Lidan , Zhou Liqin , Zhang Hongyu , Zhang Hailin TITLE=FGF10 ameliorates lipopolysaccharide-induced acute lung injury in mice via the BMP4-autophagy pathway JOURNAL=Frontiers in Pharmacology VOLUME=Volume 13 - 2022 YEAR=2022 URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/pharmacology/articles/10.3389/fphar.2022.1019755 DOI=10.3389/fphar.2022.1019755 ISSN=1663-9812 ABSTRACT=Damage to alveolar epithelial cells caused by uncontrolled inflammation is considered to be the main pathophysiological change in acute lung injury. FGF10 plays an important role as a fibroblast growth factor in lung development and lung diseases, but its protective effect against acute lung injury is unclear. Therefore, mice and human alveolar epithelial cells were injured by LPS administration. We demonstrated that FGF10 can prevent the release of IL-6, TNF-α, and IL-1β, increase the expression of BMP4 and autophagy pathway, promote the regeneration of alveolar epithelial type Ⅱ cells, and improve acute lung injury. BMP4 gene knockdown decreased the protective effect of FGF10 on the lung tissue of mice. However, the activation of autophagy was reduced after BMP4 inhibition by Noggin. Additionally, the inhibition of autophagy by 3-MA also lowered the protective effect of FGF10 on alveolar epithelial cells induced by LPS. These data suggest that the protective effect of FGF10 is related to the activation of autophagy and regeneration of alveolar epithelial cells in an LPS-induced ALI model, and that the activation of autophagy may depend on the increase in BMP4 expression.