Izabela Galvão

• PhD
• PostDoc Position at University of Technology Sydney

Exacerbated inflammation is a major contributor to tissue damage and mortality in infectious diseases, including SARS-CoV-2. The resolution phase of inflammation is critical for restoring tissue homeostasis following an injury. Annexin A1 (AnxA1) is a ubiquitous protein that plays a fundamental role in the resolution of inflammation, including in p...

Tobacco smoking is prevalent across the world and causes numerous diseases. Cigarette smoke (CS) compromises immunity, yet little is known of the components of CS that impact T cell function. MR1 is a ubiquitous molecule that presents bacterial metabolites to MAIT cells, which are highly abundant in the lungs. Using in silico, cellular, and biochem...

Long-term sequelae of coronavirus disease (COVID)-19 are frequent and of major concern. Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection affects the host gut microbiota, which is linked to disease severity in patients with COVID-19. Here, we report that the gut microbiota of post-COVID subjects had a remarkable predominance of...

Although cigarette smoke (CS) and low back pain (LBP) are common worldwide, their correlations and the mechanisms of action remain unclear. We had shown that excessive activation of Mast Cells (MCs) and their proteases play key roles in CS associated diseases, like asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), blood coagulation and lung can...

Systemic inflammation is established as part of late-stage severe lung disease, but molecular, functional, and phenotypic changes in peripheral immune cells in early disease stages remain ill defined. Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a major respiratory disease characterized by small-airway inflammation, emphysema, and severe breathi...

Lung transcriptomics studies in asthma have provided valuable information in the whole lung context, however, deciphering the individual contributions of the airway and parenchyma in disease pathogenesis may expedite the development of novel targeted treatment strategies. In this study, we performed transcriptomics on the airway and parenchyma usin...

Gout is a painful form of inflammatory arthritis characterized by the deposition of monosodium urate (MSU) crystals in the joints. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of peptide P140 on the inflammatory responses in crystal-induced mouse models of gout and cell models including MSU-treated human cells. Injection of MSU crystals into...

Phosphoinositide-3-kinases (PI3Ks) are enzymes involved in signalling and modification of the function of all mammalian cells. These enzymes phosphorylate the 3-hydroxyl group of the inositol ring of phosphatidylinositol, resulting in lipid products that act as second messengers responsible for coordinating many cellular functions, including activa...

Background There is mounting evidence that SARS-CoV-2 targets tissues beyond the respiratory tract. Long-term sequelae after COVID-19 are frequent and of major concern. Prolonged virus detection in the gut has been particularly intriguing. Of note, SARS-CoV-2 infection also disturbs the gut microbiota composition, a finding linked with disease seve...

Long-term sequelae after Coronavirus disease (COVID)-19 are frequent and of major concern. SARS-CoV-2 infection affects the host's gut microbiota, which is linked with disease severity in patients with COVID-19. We report here that the gut microbiota of post-COVID subjects had a remarkable predominance of Enterobacteriaceae strains with antibiotic-...

Objective: Increased inflammasome responses are strongly implicated in inflammatory diseases; however, their specific roles are incompletely understood. Therefore, we sought to examine the roles of NLRP3 and AIM2 inflammasomes in cigarette smoke-induced inflammation in a model of experimental chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Methods:...

Rheumatoid arthritis(RA) is a debilitating chronic inflammatory disease. Suppressors of Cytokine Signaling(SOCS) proteins regulate homeostasis and pathogenesis in several diseases. The intersection between RA pathophysiology and SOCS2 is unclear. Herein, we investigated the roles of SOCS2 during the development of an experimental antigen-induced ar...

Nonphlogistic migration of macrophages contributes to the clearance of pathogens and apoptotic cells, a critical step for the resolution of inflammation and return to homeostasis. Angiotensin-(1-7) [Ang-(1-7)] is a heptapeptide of the renin-angiotensin system that acts through Mas receptor (MasR). Ang-(1-7) has recently emerged as a novel proresolv...

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is the third leading cause of morbidity and death worldwide. Inhalation of cigarette smoke (CS) is the major cause in developed countries. Current therapies have limited efficacy in controlling disease or halting its progression. Aberrant expression of microRNAs (miRNAs) is associated with lung disease,...

Macrophages are a heterogeneous population of myeloid cells with phenotype and function modulated according to the microenvironment in which they are found. The lung resident macrophages known as Alveolar Macrophages (AM) and Interstitial Macrophages (IM) are localized in two different compartments. During lung homeostasis, macrophages can remove i...

Gout is an inflammatory disease triggered by deposition of monosodium urate (MSU) crystals in the joints, resulting in high neutrophil influx and pain. Here, we studied the role of the inhibitory receptor CD300a in the resolution process in a murine model of gout. We found increased CD300a expression on neutrophils emigrated to the joint. When comp...

Brucella abortus is a Gram-negative bacterium responsible for a worldwide zoonotic infection—Brucellosis, which has been associated with high morbidity rate in humans and severe economic losses in infected livestock. The natural route of infection is through oral and nasal mucosa but the invasion process through host gut mucosa is yet to be underst...

The resolution of inflammation is a dynamic process, characterized by the biosynthesis of pro-resolving mediators, including the lipid Lipoxin A4 (LXA4). LXA4 acts on the N-formyl peptide receptor 2 (FPR2/ALX) to mediate anti-inflammatory and pro-resolving effects. In order to exploit the therapeutic potential of endogenous LXA4 in the context of i...

The respiratory tract is constantly exposed to environmental aggressions including allergens, infections, and pollution. The immune system is pivotal to fight potential invaders and prevent the establishment of infections in the respiratory tract; however, excessive, misplaced or altered immune responses contribute to increase tissue damage, impair...

The human body harbors trillions of microorganisms including bacteria, archaea, fungi, and viruses, that have coevolved with their host in a complex ecosystem denominated microbiota. The number of genes that our microbiota carries (i.e. our microbiome) surpass by more than 100-fold the number of our human genes, and this “second genome” profoundly...

Mucositis is an inflammation of the gastrointestinal mucosa resulting from high doses of radio/chemotherapy treatment and may lead to interruption of antineoplasic therapy. Soluble fibres, like pectin, increase SCFA production, which play a role in gut homoeostasis and inflammation suppression. Due to the properties of pectin, the aim of the presen...

Mucositis is an inflammation of the gastrointestinal mucosa resulting from high doses of radio/chemotherapy treatment and may lead to interruption of antineoplasic therapy. Soluble fibres, like pectin, increase SCFA production, which play a role in gut homoeostasis and inflammation suppression. Due to the properties of pectin, the aim of the presen...

Respiratory diseases such as asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), lung fibrosis, and lung cancer, pose a huge socio-economic burden on society and are one of the leading causes of death worldwide. In the past, culture-dependent techniques could not detect bacteria in the lungs, therefore the lungs were considered a sterile environm...

Staphylococcus aureus is the main cause of septic arthritis in humans, a disease associated with high morbidity and mortality. Inflammation triggered in response to infection is fundamental to control bacterial growth but may cause permanent tissue damage. Here, we evaluated the role of Lipoxin A4 (LXA4) in S aureus‐induced arthritis in mice. Septi...

Introduction Asthma is a heterogeneous disease with complex multifactorial causes. It is possible to subclassify asthma into different phenotypes that have distinct immunological features. Eosinophilic asthma is a well-known phenotype of severe asthma, however, a large body of clinical and experimental evidence strongly associates persistent airway...

Macrophages are professional phagocytes that display remarkable plasticity, with a range of phenotypes that can be broadly characterized by the M1/M2 dichotomy. Glucocorticoid (GC)-induced leucine zipper (GILZ) is a protein known to mediate anti-inflammatory and some pro-resolving actions, including as neutrophil apoptosis. However, the role of GIL...

Annexins are well‐known Ca2+phospholipid‐binding proteins, which have a wide variety of cellular functions. The role of annexin A1 (AnxA1) in the innate immune system has focused mainly on the anti‐inflammatory and pro‐resolving properties through its binding to the FPR2/ALX Receptor. However, studies suggesting an intracellular role of AnxA1 are e...

Macrophages are central to inflammation resolution, an active process aimed at restoring tissue homeostasis following an inflammatory response. Here, the effects of db-cAMP on macrophage phenotype and function were investigated. Injection of db-cAMP into the pleural cavity of mice induced monocytes recruitment in a manner dependent on PKA and CCR2/...

Mice are widely used to assess the pathogenesis of diseases. An experimental model of gout consists of the injection of uric acid crystals into joints of mice, which reproduce inflammation and functional changes of the human disease. Uric acid crystals activate synoviocytes culminating in the release of IL-1β and neutrophil recruitment, key inflamm...

Uncontrolled inflammation leads to tissue damage and it is central for the development of chronic inflammatory diseases and autoimmunity. An acute inflammatory response is finely regulated by the action of anti-inflammatory and pro-resolutive mediators, culminating in the resolution of inflammation and restoration of homeostasis. There are few stud...

Ang-(1-7) binds to the G-protein-coupled MAS receptor and exerts many beneficial actions in the context of acute inflammation. Ang-(1-7) reduces production and expression of many cytokines and adhesion molecules and decreases leukocyte movement in vitro and in vivo. In animal models of inflammation, administration of Ang-(1-7) or its analogues is,...

This study investigates the participation of PI3Kγ in the development of joint inflammation and dysfunction in an experimental model of acute gout in mice. Acute gout was induced by injection of monosodium urate (MSU) crystals into the tibiofemoral joint of mice. The involvement of PI3Kγ was evaluated using a selective inhibitor and mice deficient...

The gastrointestinal tract encounters a wide variety of microorganisms, including beneficial symbionts, pathobionts, and pathogens. Recent evidence has shown that the gut microbiota, directly or indirectly through its components, such as metabolites, actively participates in the host inflammatory response by cytokine-microbiota or microbiota-cytoki...

Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis is characterized by aberrant fibroblast activation and excessive collagen deposition that may eventually lead to organ dysfunction. Lung fibrosis is frequently observed in cancer patients undergoing bleomycin (BLM) treatment. Therefore, BLM instillation in mice is the most frequent model used to investigate pulmonary f...

The gasotransmitter hydrogen sulfide (H2S) is known to regulate many pathophysiological processes. Preclinical assays have demonstrated that H2S donors exhibit anti-inflammatory and antinociceptive activities, characterized by reduction of inflammatory mediators production, leukocytes recruitment, edema and mechanical allodynia. In the present stud...

Sphingosine‐1‐phosphate (S1P) is an important sphingolipid derived from plasma membrane and has a known role in productive phase of inflammation, but its role in neutrophil survival and resolution phase of inflammation is unknown. Here, we investigated the effects of inhibition of S1P receptors and the blockade of S1P synthesis in BALB/c mice and h...

The renin-angiotensin system (RAS) peptides play an important role in inflammation. Resolution of inflammation contributes to restore tissue homeostasis, and it is characterized by neutrophil apoptosis and their subsequent removal by macrophages, which are remarkable plastic cells involved in the pathophysiology of diverse inflammatory diseases. Ho...

Gating strategy for the evaluation of macrophage populations in the pleurisy model. Leukocytes recovered from pleural cavity were stained with specific antibodies and analyzed by flow cytometry. Macrophage populations were defined according to F4/80, GR1 (Ly6G/Ly6C), and CD11b expression. Cells selected in the SSC × FSC gates (first dot plot) were...

In vitro characterization of M(LPS+IFN-γ) and M(IL-4) macrophages. Real-time PCR analysis of expression levels of (a) TNF-α, (b) CCL2, (c) IL-1β, (d) YM1, (e) FIZZ1, and (f) MRC1 in resting (M0), M(LPS+IFN-γ)-polarized (LPS; 1 μg/mL and IFN-γ; 20 ng/mL), and M(IL-4)-polarized (IL-4; 20 ng/m) macrophages. M(LPS+IFN-γ) markers: CCL2, TNF-α, and IL-1β...

Effect of Ang-(1-7) and alamandine on M0 macrophages. Bone marrow was isolated and differentiated to bone marrow-derived macrophages (BMDMs). The treatment protocol (24 h) was first standardized by the in vitro polarization of M0 macrophages towards M(LPS+IFN-γ) (a) or M(IL-4) (b and c). BMDMs were treated with either Ang-(1-7) or alamandine (10−7...

Mouse primers used for quantitative real-time PCR.

Phosphoinositide-3 kinases (PI3Ks) are central signaling enzymes that are involved in many aspects of immune cell function. PI3Kγ and PI3Kδ are the major isoforms expressed in leukocytes. The role of PI3K isoforms in the resolution of inflammation is still poorly understood. Here, we investigated the contribution of PI3Kγ and PI3Kδ to the resolutio...

Original western blot from the expression of p-IκBα in synovial tissue collected 18 h after MSU injection. For loading control, membrane was reprobed with anti-GAPDH.

Inflammation is a physiologic response against noxious stimuli and microbial invaders. The basic elements of inflammation include host cells, blood vessels, proteins and lipid mediators, which work together to eliminate the inflammatory stimulus as well as initiate the resolution and repair. Mediators of inflammation are regulatory molecules that c...

Influenza A virus (IAV) infection causes severe pulmonary disease characterized by intense leukocyte infiltration. Phosphoinositide-3 kinases (PI3Ks) are central signaling enzymes, involved in cell growth, survival, and migration. Class IB PI3K or phosphatidyl inositol 3 kinase-gamma (PI3Kγ), mainly expressed by leukocytes, is involved in cell migr...

Gating strategies for FACS analysis of lymphocytes (1), natural killer (NK) and B cells (2), macrophages and neutrophils in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (3), and macrophages and neutrophils in lungs (4).

Pneumonia is one of the leading causes of death and mortality worldwide. The inflammatory responses that follow respiratory infections are protective leading to pathogen clearance but can also be deleterious if unregulated. The microbiota is known to be an important protective barrier against infections, mediating both direct inhibitory effects aga...

Defective resolution of inflammation may be crucial for the initiation and development of chronic inflammatory diseases, such as arthritis. Therefore, it has been suggested that therapeutic strategies based on molecules that facilitate inflammation resolution present great potential for the treatment of chronic inflammatory diseases. In this study,...

Therapeutic administration of angiotensin-(1-7) decreases neutrophil accumulation in the synovial cavity and periarticular tissues in a model of antigen-induced arthritis (AIA) in mice. Experimental protocol: On day 0, mice were immunized by injecting 10 µg of mBSA into each knee joint. Fourteen days later, arthritis was induced by an additional in...

Expression of Mas receptor mRNA in human neutrophils. Mas receptor mRNA expression was assessed using real time-PCR. (A) Constitutive gene GPDH (control) amplification blot; (B) constitutive gene melt curve GAPDH (control); (C) Mas receptor amplification blot; (D) and Mas receptor melt curve.

Angiotensin-(1-7) decreases pIkBα expression. Human neutrophils were treated with Ang-(1-7) or PBS for 6 h and cells evaluated by Western blot analysis for pIkBα. For loading control, membranes were reprobed with GAPDH. Blots are representative of three independent experiments using cells from different donors.

Annexin A1 (AnxA1) is a glucocorticoidregulated protein known for its antiinflammatory and proresolving effects. We have previously shown that cAMP enhancing compounds rolipram (ROL - a PDE4 inhibitor) and db-cAMP (cAMP mimetic) drive caspasedependent resolution of neutrophilic inflammation. In this follow up study, we investigated whether AnxA1 co...

Gout is a self-limited inflammatory disease caused by deposition of monosodium urate (MSU) crystals in the joints. Resolution of inflammation is an active process leading to restoration of tissue homeostasis. Here, we studied the role of Annexin A1 (AnxA1), a glucocorticoid-regulated protein that has anti-inflammatory and pro-resolving actions, in...

Gout is a disease characterized by the deposition of monosodium urate (MSU) crystals in the joints. Continuous gout episodes may lead to unresolved inflammatory responses and tissue damage. We investigated the effects of a high-fiber diet and acetate, a short-chain fatty acid (SCFA) resulting from the metabolism of fiber by gut microbiota, on the i...

Rationale: Pneumococcal pneumonia is a leading cause of mortality worldwide. The inflammatory response to bacteria is necessary to control infection but may also contribute to tissue damage. Phosphodiesterase-4 (PDE4) inhibitors, such as rolipram (ROL), effectively reduce inflammation. Here, we examined the impact of rolipram in a pneumococcal pne...

This study evaluated the role of macrophage migration inhibitory factor in inflammation caused by monosodium urate crystals. The concentration of macrophage migration inhibitory factor was increased in synovial fluid of patients with acute gout, and there was a positive correlation between intra-articular macrophage migration inhibitory factor and...

Annexin A1 (AnxA1) is a glucocorticoid-regulated protein endowed with anti-inflammatory and proresolving properties. Intact AnxA1 is a 37-kDa protein that may be cleaved in vivo at the N-terminal region by neutrophil proteases including elastase and proteinase-3, generating the 33-kDa isoform that is largely inactive. In this study, we investigated...

Gout manifests as recurrent episodes of acute joint inflammation and pain due to the deposition of monosodium urate (MSU) crystals within the affected tissue in a process dependent on NLRP3 inflammasome activation. The synthesis, activation and release of IL-1β are crucial for MSU-induced inflammation. The current study evaluated the mechanism by w...

Gout is an acute inflammatory disease characterised by the presence of uric acid crystals in the joint. This event promotes neutrophil infiltration and activation that leads to tissue damage. We investigated here whether the oral administration of the probiotic strain Bifidobacterium longum 5(1A) (BL) could ameliorate monosodium urate crystal (MSU)...

Host-microbial interactions are central in health and disease. Monosodium urate (MSU) crystals cause gout by activating the NLPR3 inflammasome, leading to IL-1β production and neutrophil recruitment. Here, the relevance of gut microbiota, acetate and the metabolic sensor receptor GPR43 in regulating inflammation was studied in a murine model of gou...