S48 Investigating the role of dishevelled associated activator of Morphogenesis 2 (Daam2) in lung development

Emphysema is characterised by the destruction of alveoli which cannot repair themselves. Both lung development and repair heavily rely on collective cell migration which is regulated by the planar cell polarity (PCP) pathway. Dishevelled Associated Activator of Morphogenesis 2 (Daam2) is a key protein in the PCP pathway and is involved in the polymerisation of actin; however, its role in lung development has not been investigated. To do this, we analysed the lung architecture of embryonic heterozygous and homozygous Daam2 knockout mice with wildtype littermates. To determine the effect of the Daam2 deletion at different stages of lung development, the width and number of airways in HE another indicator of impaired lung development (n=12, P Quantification of SP-C positive cells revealed fewer cells present in Daam2 homozygotes’ lungs. As SP-C is a marker of alveolar type II cells, the reduction in SP-C positive cells in Daam2 mutants is another indication of compromised lung development in the absence of Daam2 expression. Further investigation into the role of Daam2 in lung development would be valuable for studies aimed at stimulating tissue repair to treat emphysema.