Allograft inflammatory factor 1 (AIF1) is a commonly used marker for microglia in the brains of humans and some animal models but has had limited applications elsewhere. We sought to determine whether AIF1 can be used as a macrophage marker across common laboratory animal species and tissues. We studied tissues (that is, spleen, liver, and lung) with defined macrophage populations by using an AIF1 immunostaining technique previously validated in human tissue. Tissues were collected from various mouse strains (n = 20), rat strains (n = 15), pigs (n = 4), ferrets (n = 4), and humans (n = 4, lung only). All samples of liver had scattered immunostaining in interstitial cells, consistent with resident tissue macrophages (Kupffer cells). Spleen samples had cellular immunostaining of macrophages in both the red and white pulp compartments, but the red pulp had more immunostained cellular aggregates and, in some species, increased immunostaining intensity compared with white pulp. In lung, alveolar macrophages had weak to moderate staining, whereas interstitial and perivascular macrophages demonstrated moderate to robust staining. Incidental lesions and tissue changes were detected in some sections, including a tumor, inducible bronchus-associated lymphoid tissue, and inflammatory lesions that demonstrated AIF1 immunostaining of macrophages. Finally, we compared AIF1 immunostaining of alveolar macrophages between a hypertensive rat model (SHR strain) and a normotensive model (WKY strain). SHR lungs had altered intensity and distribution of immunostaining in activated macrophages compared with macrophages of WKY lungs. Overall, AIF1 immunostaining demonstrated reproducible macrophage staining across multiple species and tissue types. Given the increasing breadth of model species used to study human disease, the use of cross-species markers and techniques can reduce some of the inherent variability within translational research.

Logan P McQuillen

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