# The signaling role of alveolar type 1 cell-derived Wnt ligands during alveologenesis

> **NIH NIH F31** · UNIVERSITY OF TX MD ANDERSON CAN CTR · 2020 · $30,915

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY
Although surfactant producing alveolar type 2 cells have been the focus for many years, the alveolar type 1
(AT1) cells are the neighboring lung epithelial cells that cover >90% gas exchange surface area. We found
AT1 cells are more than a passive structure because they express VEGFA and signal to the vasculature. We
also found AT1 cells express Wnt ligands. Interestingly, cultured lung fibroblasts proliferate upon WNT3A
stimulation and lung myofibroblasts express widely canonical Wnt target gene, Axin2. This led to our
hypothesis that AT1 cells signal lung myofibroblasts via Wnt ligands. We will investigate the requirement of
AT1-derived Wnt ligands for lung myofibroblasts during alveologenesis (aim 1), the epithelial-mesenchymal
signaling mechanism (aim 2), and the Wnt-mediated crosstalk between AT1 and lung myofibroblasts in an
experimental BPD models (aim 3). Successful completion of this study will reveal a new signaling role of AT1
cells and elucidate lung mesenchymal cell types, thereby representing a first step toward our long-term goal of
unraveling epithelial-mesenchymal crosstalk during alveologenesis and BPD pathogenesis.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10063428
- **Project number:** 5F31HL149232-02
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF TX MD ANDERSON CAN CTR
- **Principal Investigator:** Odemaris Narvaez del Pilar
- **Activity code:** F31 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $30,915
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2019-09-01 → 2021-07-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10063428

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10063428, The signaling role of alveolar type 1 cell-derived Wnt ligands during alveologenesis (5F31HL149232-02). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-28 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10063428. Licensed CC0.

---

*[NIH grants dataset](/datasets/nih-grants) · CC0 1.0*