Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor (VEGF) Promotes Assembly of the p130Cas Interactome to Drive Endothelial Chemotactic Signaling and Angiogenesis.
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ABSTRACT:
SUBMITTER: Evans IM
PROVIDER: S-EPMC5294206 | biostudies-literature |
REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature
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Project description:Recently, vascular endothelial growth factor-C (VEGF-C or VEGF-2) was described as a specific ligand for the endothelial receptor tyrosine kinases VEGFR-2 and VEGFR-3. In vivo data, limited to constitutive overexpression in transgenic mice, have been interpreted as evidence that the growth-promoting effects of VEGF-C are restricted to development of the lymphatic vasculature. The current studies were designed to test the hypothesis that constitutive expression of VEGF-C in adult animals promotes angiogenesis. In vitro, VEGF-C exhibited a dose-dependent mitogenic and chemotactic effect on endothelial cells, particularly for microvascular endothelial cells (72% and 95% potency, respectively, compared with VEGF-A/VEGF-1). VEGF-C stimulated release of nitric oxide from endothelial cells and increased vascular permeability in the Miles assay; the latter effect was attenuated by pretreatment with the nitric oxide synthase inhibitor N(omega)-nitro-L-arginine methyl ester. Both VEGFR-2 and VEGFR-3 receptors were shown to be expressed in human saphenous vein and internal mammary artery. The potential for VEGF-C to promote angiogenesis in vivo was then tested in a rabbit ischemic hindlimb model. Ten days after ligation of the external iliac artery, VEGF-C was administered as naked plasmid DNA (pcVEGF-C; 500 microg) from the polymer coating of an angioplasty balloon (n = 8 each) or as recombinant human protein (rhVEGF-C; 500 microg) by direct intra-arterial infusion. Physiological and anatomical assessments of angiogenesis 30 days later showed evidence of therapeutic angiogenesis for both pcVEGF-C and rhVEGF-C. Hindlimb blood pressure ratio (ischemic/normal) after pcVEGF-C increased to 0.83 +/- 0.03 after pcVEGF-C versus 0.59 +/- 0.04 (P < 0.005) in pGSVLacZ controls and to 0.76 +/- 0.04 after rhVEGF-C versus 0.58 +/- 0.03 (P < 0.01) in control rabbits receiving rabbit serum albumin. Doppler-derived iliac flow reserve was 2.7 +/- 0.1 versus 2.0 +/- 0.2 (P < 0.05) for pcVEGF-C versus LacZ controls and 2.9 +/- 0.3 versus 2.1 +/- 0.2 (P < 0.05) for rhVEGF-C versus albumin controls. Neovascularity was documented by angiography in vivo (angiographic scores: 0.85 +/- 0.05 versus 0.51 +/- 0.02 (P < 0.001) for plasmid DNA and 0.74 +/- 0.08 versus 0.53 +/- 0.03 (P < 0.05) for protein), and capillary density (per mm2) was measured at necropsy (252 +/- 12 versus 183 +/- 10 (P < 0.005) for plasmid DNA and 229 +/- 20 versus 164 +/- 20 (P < 0.05) for protein). In contrast to the results of gene targeting experiments, constitutive expression of VEGF-C in adult animals promotes angiogenesis in the setting of limb ischemia. VEGF-C and its receptors thus constitute an apparently redundant pathway for postnatal angiogenesis and may represent an alternative to VEGF-A for strategies of therapeutic angiogenesis in patients with limb and/or myocardial ischemia.
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Project description:BackgroundFructose is a very common sugar found in natural foods, while current studies demonstrate that high fructose intake is significantly associated with increased risk of multiple cancers and more aggressive tumor behavior, but the relevant mechanisms are not fully understood.MethodsTumor-grafting experiments and in vitro angiogenesis assays were conducted to detect the effect of fructose and the conditioned medium of fructose-cultured tumor cells on biological function of vascular endothelial cells (VECs) and angiogenesis. 448 colorectal cancer specimens were utilized to analyze the relationship between Glut5 expression levels in VECs and tumor cells and microvascular density (MVD).ResultsWe found that fructose can be metabolized by VECs and activate the Akt and Src signaling pathways, thereby enhancing the proliferation, migration, and tube-forming abilities of VECs and thereby promoting angiogenesis. Moreover, fructose can also improve the expression of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) by upregulating the production of reactive oxygen species (ROS) in colorectal cancer cells, thus indirectly enhancing the biological function of VECs. Furthermore, this pro-angiogenic effect of fructose metabolism has also been well validated in clinical colorectal cancer tissues and mouse models. Fructose contributes to angiogenesis in mouse subcutaneous tumor grafts, and MVD is positively correlated with Glut5 expression levels of both endothelial cells and tumor cells of human colorectal cancer specimens.ConclusionsThese findings establish the direct role and mechanism by which fructose promotes tumor progression through increased angiogenesis, and provide reliable evidence for a better understanding of tumor metabolic reprogramming.
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Project description:Anti-angiogenic therapies, such as anti-VEGF antibodies (AVAs), have shown promise in clinical settings. However, adaptive resistance to such therapies occurs frequently. We use orthotopic ovarian cancer models with AVA-adaptive resistance to investigate the underlying mechanisms. Genomic profiling of AVA-resistant tumors guides us to endothelial p130cas. We find that bevacizumab induces cleavage of VEGFR2 in endothelial cells by caspase-10 and that VEGFR2 fragments internalize into the nucleus and autophagosomes. Nuclear VEGFR2 and p130cas fragments, together with TNKS1BP1 (tankyrase-1-binding protein), initiate endothelial cell death. Blockade of autophagy in AVA-resistant endothelial cells retains VEGFR2 at the membrane with bevacizumab treatment. Targeting host p130cas with RGD (Arg-Gly-Asp)-tagged nanoparticles or genomic ablation of vascular p130cas in p130casflox/floxTie2Cre mice significantly extends the survival of mice with AVA-resistant ovarian tumors. Higher vascular p130cas is associated with shorter survival of individuals with ovarian cancer. Our findings identify opportunities for new strategies to overcome adaptive resistance to AVA therapy.
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Project description:p130Cas is a polyvalent adapter protein essential for cardiovascular development, and with a key role in cell movement. In order to identify the pathways by which p130Cas exerts its biological functions in endothelial cells we mapped the p130Cas interactome and its dynamic changes in response to VEGF using high-resolution mass spectrometry and reconstruction of protein interaction (PPI) networks with the aid of multiple PPI databases. The work presented here was based on a collaboration between University College London and University College Dublin. Dr Ian Evans (first author) and Prof. Ian Zachary (lab head), can be contacted at: Centre for Cardiovascular Biology and Medicine, Division of Medicine The Rayne Building, University College London, London WC1E 6JJ, United Kingdom. Contact details for University College Dublin collaborators can be found below.
2017-01-02 | PXD003902 | Pride
Project description:Aberrant blood vessel formation contributes to a wide variety of pathologies, and factors that regulate angiogenesis are attractive therapeutic targets. Endothelial and smooth muscle cell-derived neuropilin-like protein (ESDN) is a neuropilin-related transmembrane protein expressed in ECs; however, its potential effect on VEGF responses remains undefined. Here, we generated global and EC-specific Esdn knockout mice and demonstrated that ESDN promotes VEGF-induced human and murine EC proliferation and migration. Deletion of Esdn in the mouse interfered with adult and developmental angiogenesis, and knockdown of the Esdn homolog (dcbld2) in zebrafish impaired normal vascular development. Loss of ESDN in ECs blunted VEGF responses in vivo and attenuated VEGF-induced VEGFR-2 signaling without altering VEGF receptor or neuropilin expression. Finally, we found that ESDN associates with VEGFR-2 and regulates its complex formation with negative regulators of VEGF signaling, protein tyrosine phosphatases PTP1B and TC-PTP, and VE-cadherin. These findings establish ESDN as a regulator of VEGF responses in ECs that acts through a mechanism distinct from neuropilins. As such, ESDN may serve as a therapeutic target for angiogenesis regulation.
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Project description:Recent evidence has suggested an important role of miRNAs in liver biology and diseases, although the implication of miRNAs in cholangiocarcinoma remains to be defined further. This study was designed to examine the biological function and molecular mechanism of miR-101 in cholangiocarcinogenesis and tumor progression. In situ hybridization and quantitative RT-PCR were performed to determine the expression of miR-101 in human cholangiocarcinoma tissues and cell lines. Compared with noncancerous biliary epithelial cells, the expression of miR-101 is decreased in 43.5% of human cholangiocarcinoma specimens and in all three cholangiocarcinoma cell lines used in this study. Forced overexpression of miR-101 significantly inhibited cholangiocarcinoma growth in severe combined immunodeficiency mice. miR-101-overexpressed xenograft tumor tissues showed decreased capillary densities and decreased levels of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) and cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2). The VEGF and COX-2 mRNAs were identified as the bona fide targets of miR-101 in cholangiocarcinoma cells by both computational analysis and experimental assays. miR-101 inhibits cholangiocarcinoma angiogenesis by direct targeting of VEGF mRNA 3'untranslated region and by repression of VEGF gene transcription through inhibition of COX-2. This study established a novel tumor-suppressor role of miR-101 in cholangiocarcinoma and it suggests the possibility of targeting miR-101 and related signaling pathways for future therapy.
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Project description:Vasculogenesis involves the differentiation of vascular endothelial progenitors de novo from undifferentiated mesoderm, their migration and coalescence to form the major embryonic vessels and the acquisition of arterial or venous identity. Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor (Vegf) signaling plays multiple roles during vascular development. However, its function during embryonic vasculogenesis has been controversial. Previous studies have implicated Vegf signaling in either regulating arteriovenous specification or overall vascular endothelial differentiation. To clarify the role of Vegf in embryonic vasculogenesis and identify its downstream targets, we used chemical inhibitors of Vegf receptor (Vegfr) signaling in zebrafish embryos as well as zebrafish genetic mutants. A high level of chemical inhibition of Vegfr signaling resulted in the reduction of overall vascular endothelial marker gene expression, including downregulation of both arterial and venous markers, ultimately leading to the apoptosis of vascular endothelial cells. In contrast, a low level of Vegfr inhibition specifically blocked arterial specification while the expression of venous markers appeared largely unaffected or increased. Inhibition of Vegfr signaling prior to the initiation of vasculogenesis reduced overall vascular endothelial differentiation, while inhibition of Vegfr signaling starting at mid-somitogenesis stages largely inhibited arterial specification. Conversely, Vegf overexpression resulted in the expansion of both arterial and pan-endothelial markers, while the expression of several venous-specific markers was downregulated. We further show that Vegf signaling affects overall endothelial differentiation by modulating the expression of the ETS transcription factor etv2/ etsrp. etv2 expression was downregulated in Vegfr- inhibited embryos, and expanded in Vegfaa-overexpressing embryos. Furthermore, vascular-specific overexpression of etv2 in Vegfr-inhibited embryos rescued defects in vascular endothelial differentiation. Similarly, vegfaa genetic mutants displayed a combination of the two phenotypes observed with chemical Vegfr inhibition: the expression of arterial and pan-endothelial markers including etv2 was downregulated while the expression of most venous markers was either expanded or unchanged. Based on these results we propose a revised model which explains the different phenotypes observed upon inhibition of Vegf signaling: low levels of Vegf signaling promote overall vascular endothelial differentiation and cell survival by upregulating etv2 expression, while high levels of Vegf signaling promote arterial and inhibit venous specification.
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Project description:p130Cas is a polyvalent adapter protein essential for cardiovascular development, and with a key role in cell movement. In order to identify the pathways by which p130Cas exerts its biological functions in endothelial cells we mapped the p130Cas interactome and its dynamic changes in response to VEGF using high-resolution mass spectrometry and reconstruction of protein interaction (PPI) networks with the aid of multiple PPI databases. The work presented here was based on a collaboration between University College London and University College Dublin. Dr Ian Evans (first author) and Prof. Ian Zachary (lab head), can be contacted at: Centre for Cardiovascular Biology and Medicine, Division of Medicine The Rayne Building, University College London, London WC1E 6JJ, United Kingdom. Contact details for University College Dublin collaborators can be found below.
2017-04-01 | MSV000080860 | MassIVE
Project description:Neuropilin (NRP) 1, previously identified as a neuronal receptor that mediates repulsive growth cone guidance, has been shown recently to function also in endothelial cells as an isoform-specific receptor for vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF)(165) and as a coreceptor in vitro of VEGF receptor 2. However, its potential role in pathologic angiogenesis remains unknown. In the present study, we first show that VEGF selectively up-regulates NRP1 but not NRP2 via the VEGF receptor 2-dependent pathway. By NRP1 binding analysis, we showed that its induction by VEGF accompanies functional receptor expression. Endothelial proliferation stimulated by VEGF(165) was inhibited significantly by antibody perturbation of NRP1. In a murine model of VEGF-dependent angioproliferative retinopathy, intense NRP1 mRNA expression was observed in the newly formed vessels. Furthermore, selective NRP1 inhibition in this model suppressed neovascular formation substantially. These results suggest that VEGF cannot only activate endothelial cells directly but also can contribute to robust angiogenesis in vivo by a mechanism that involves up-regulation of its cognate receptor expression.
| S-EPMC117569 | biostudies-literature
Project description:The transcription factor Krüppel-like factor 4 (KLF4) has been implicated in regulating cell proliferation, migration and differentiation in a variety of human cells and is one of four factors required for the induction of pluripotent stem cell reprogramming. However, its role has not been addressed in ocular neovascular diseases. This study investigated the role of KLF4 in angiogenesis and underlying molecular mechanisms in human retinal microvascular endothelial cells (HRMECs). The functional role of KLF4 in HRMECs was determined following lentiviral vector mediated inducible expression and shRNA knockdown of KLF4. Inducible expression of KLF4 promotes cell proliferation, migration and tube formation. In contrast, silencing KLF4 inhibits cell proliferation, migration, tube formation and induces apoptosis in HRMECs. KLF4 promotes angiogenesis by transcriptionally activating VEGF expression, thus activating the VEGF signaling pathway in HRMECs.
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