Non-syndromic thoracic aortic aneurysm: cellular and molecular insights.
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ABSTRACT:
SUBMITTER: Martin-Blazquez A
PROVIDER: S-EPMC8251829 | biostudies-literature |
REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature
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Project description:Individuals diagnosed with thoracic aortic aneurysm/dissection (TAAD) are given activity restrictions in an attempt to mitigate serious health complications and sudden death. The psychological distress resulting from activity restrictions has been established for other diseases or patient populations; however, individuals with non-syndromic TAAD have not been previously evaluated. Seventy-nine participants completed a questionnaire utilizing the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9) and Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD-7) questionnaires, which assess levels of depression and anxiety respectively. Additionally, quantitative and qualitative questions explored self-reported psychological distress in response to activity restrictions. Individuals who reported higher PHQ + GAD scores had been living with a diagnosis longer than two years (p = 0.0004), were between 35 and 65 years old (p = 0.05), reported not coping well (p = 0.0035), and reported physical activity was "very important" (p = 0.04). Results from individual questions showed that individuals who reported their diagnosis affected them financially were 3.5 times more likely to report "feeling nervous, anxious, or on edge" (CI = [0.81, 15.6], p = 0.094). Qualitative analysis revealed themes that identified participant beliefs regarding distress, ability to cope, hindrances to coping ability, and resources. These results show psychological distress can result from physical activity restrictions in non-syndromic TAAD individuals. Additionally, certain subpopulations may be more susceptible to distress. This is the first study to examine the psychological distress individuals with non-syndromic TAAD experience as a result of prescribed activity restrictions. Genetic counselors and other healthcare professionals can utilize this information to provide more tailored cardiovascular genetic counseling and increase its therapeutic potential for patients.
| S-EPMC8554902 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Thoracic aortic aneurysms result from dysregulated remodeling of the vascular extracellular matrix, which may occur as a result of altered resident cellular function. The present study tested the hypothesis that aortic fibroblasts undergo a stable change in cellular phenotype during thoracic aortic aneurysm formation.Primary murine aortic fibroblasts were isolated from normal and thoracic aortic aneurysm-induced aortas (4 weeks post induction with 0.5 mol/L CaCl(2) 15 minutes) by the outgrowth method. Normal and thoracic aortic aneurysm cultures were examined using a focused polymerase chain reaction array to determine fibroblast-specific changes in gene expression in the absence and presence of biological stimulation (endothelin-1, phorbol-12-myristate-13-acetate, angiotensin-II). The relative expression of 38 genes, normalized to 4 housekeeping genes, was determined, and genes displaying a minimum 2-fold increase/decrease or genes with significantly different normalized cycle threshold values were considered to have altered expression.At steady state, thoracic aortic aneurysm fibroblasts revealed elevated expression of several matrix metalloproteinases (Mmp2, Mmp11, Mmp14), collagen genes/elastin (Col1a1, Col1a2, Col3a1, Eln), and other matrix proteins, as well as decreased expression of Mmp3, Timp3, and Ltbp1. Moreover, gene expression profiles in thoracic aortic aneurysm fibroblasts were different than normal fibroblasts after equivalent biological stimuli.This study demonstrated for the first time that isolated primary aortic fibroblasts from thoracic aortic aneurysm-induced mice possess a unique and stable gene expression profile, and when challenged with biological stimuli, induce a transcriptional response that is different from normal aortic fibroblasts. Together, these data suggest that aortic fibroblasts undergo a stable phenotypic change during thoracic aortic aneurysm development, which may drive the enhancement of extracellular matrix proteolysis in thoracic aortic aneurysm progression.
| S-EPMC2901416 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Loeys-Dietz syndrome (LDS) associates with a tissue signature for high transforming growth factor (TGF)-? signaling but is often caused by heterozygous mutations in genes encoding positive effectors of TGF-? signaling, including either subunit of the TGF-? receptor or SMAD3, thereby engendering controversy regarding the mechanism of disease. Here, we report heterozygous mutations or deletions in the gene encoding the TGF-?2 ligand for a phenotype within the LDS spectrum and show upregulation of TGF-? signaling in aortic tissue from affected individuals. Furthermore, haploinsufficient Tgfb2(+/-) mice have aortic root aneurysm and biochemical evidence of increased canonical and noncanonical TGF-? signaling. Mice that harbor both a mutant Marfan syndrome (MFS) allele (Fbn1(C1039G/+)) and Tgfb2 haploinsufficiency show increased TGF-? signaling and phenotypic worsening in association with normalization of TGF-?2 expression and high expression of TGF-?1. Taken together, these data support the hypothesis that compensatory autocrine and/or paracrine events contribute to the pathogenesis of TGF-?-mediated vasculopathies.
| S-EPMC3616632 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Thoracic aortic aneurysm (TAA) is a genetic disease predisposing to aortic dissection. It is important to identify the genetic modifiers controlling penetrance and expressivity to improve clinical prognostication. Exome sequencing was performed in 27 subjects with syndromic or familial TAA presenting with extreme phenotypes (15 with severe TAA; 12 with mild or absent TAA). Family-based analysis of a subset of the cohort identified variants, genes, and pathways segregating with TAA severity among three families. A rare missense variant in ADCK4 (p.Arg63Trp) segregated with mild TAA in each family. Genes and pathways identified in families were further investigated in the entire cohort using the optimal unified sequence kernel association test, finding significance for the gene COL15A1 (p = 0.025) and the retina homeostasis pathway (p = 0.035). Thus, we identified candidate genetic modifiers of TAA severity by exome-based study of extreme phenotypes, which may lead to improved risk stratification and development of new medical therapies.
| S-EPMC5702585 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Acute and chronic aortic diseases have been diagnosed and studied by physicians for centuries. Both the diagnosis and treatment of aortic diseases have been steadily improving over time, largely because of increased physician awareness and improvements in diagnostic modalities. This comprehensive review discusses the pathophysiology and risk factors, classification schemes, epidemiology, clinical presentations, diagnostic modalities, management options, and outcomes of various aortic conditions, including acute aortic dissection (and its variants intramural hematoma and penetrating aortic ulcers) and thoracic aortic aneurysms. Literature searches of the PubMed database were conducted using the following keywords: aortic dissection, intramural hematoma, aortic ulcer, and thoracic aortic aneurysm. Retrospective and prospective studies performed within the past 20 years were included in the review; however, most data are from the past 15 years.
| S-EPMC2676130 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Ascending aortic aneurysms are mostly asymptomatic and present a great risk of aortic dissection or perforation. Consequently, ascending aortic aneurysms are a source of lethality with increased age. Biological aging results in progressive attrition of telomeres, which are the repetitive DNA sequences at the end of chromosomes. These telomeres play an important role in protection of genomic DNA from end-to-end fusions. Telomere maintenance and telomere attrition-associated senescence of endothelial and smooth muscle cells have been indicated to be part of the pathogenesis of degenerative vascular diseases. This systematic review provides an overview of telomeres, telomere-associated proteins and telomerase to the formation and progression of aneurysms of the thoracic ascending aorta. A better understanding of telomere regulation in the vascular pathology might provide new therapeutic approaches. Measurements of telomere length and telomerase activity could be potential prognostic biomarkers for increased risk of death in elderly patients suffering from an aortic aneurysm.
| S-EPMC5795955 | biostudies-literature
Project description:BackgroundThoracic aortic aneurysms and dissections (TAAD) is a critical condition that often goes undiagnosed with fatal consequences. While majority of the cases are sporadic, more than 20% are inherited as a single gene disorder. The most common familial TAA is Marfan syndrome (MFS), which is primarily caused by mutations in fibrillin-1 (FBN1) gene. Patients with FBN1 mutations are at higher risk for dissection compared to other patients with similar size aneurysms.MethodsFifteen family members were genotyped using Affymetrix-10K genechips. A genome-wide association study was carried out using an autosomal dominant model of inheritance with incomplete penetrance. Mutation screening of all exons and exon-intron boundaries of FBN1 gene which reside near the peak Lod score was carried out by direct sequencing.ResultsThe index case presented with agonizing substernal pain and was found to have TAAD by transthoracic echocardiogram. The family history was significant for 3 first degree relatives with TAA. Nine additional family members were diagnosed with TAA by echocardiography examinations. The affected individuals had no syndromic features. A genome-wide analysis of linkage mapped the disease gene to a single locus on chromosome 15q21 with a peak Lod score of 3.6 at fibrillin-1 (FBN1) gene locus (odds ratio > 4000:1 in favour of linkage), strongly suggesting that FBN1 is the causative gene. No mutation was identified within the exons and exon-intron boundaries of FBN1 gene that segregated with the disease. Haplotype analysis identified additional mutation carriers who had previously unknown status due to borderline dilation of the ascending aorta.ConclusionsA familial non-syndromic TAAD is strongly associated with the FBN1 gene locus and has a malignant disease course often seen in MFS patients. This finding indicates the importance of obtaining detailed family history and echocardiographic screening of extended relatives of patients with non-syndromic TAAD to improve the outcome. In addition, association of non-syndromic TAAD with the Marfan disease gene locus poses the question whether secondary prevention strategies employed for Marfan syndrome patients should be applied to all patients with familial TAAD.
| S-EPMC2958900 | biostudies-literature
Project description:A number of autosomal dominantly inherited disorders, such as Marfan syndrome (MFS) and Loeys-Dietz syndrome (LDS), are associated with predisposition to thoracic aortic aneurysms and dissections (TAADs). In the majority of cases, mutations in genes encoding components of the transforming growth factor-β (TGF-β) signaling pathway, such as FBN1, TGFBR1, TGFBR2 and SMAD3, underlie the disease. Recently, a familial syndromic form of TAAD with other clinical features that overlap the MFS-LDS spectrum has been described to be caused by heterozygous loss-of-function mutations in TGFB2, encoding the TGF-β2 ligand of TGF-β serine/threonine kinase receptors (TGFBRs). We analyzed the TGFB2 gene by sequencing in a cohort of 88 individuals with a Marfan-like phenotype and/or TAAD, who did not have mutations in known genes causing thoracic aortic disease. We identified the novel heterozygous c.1165dupA mutation in exon 7 of TGFB2 in three members of a family, a 51-year-old male, his brother and nephew with aortic aneurysms, cervical arterial tortuosity and/or skeletal abnormalities as well as craniofacial dysmorphisms. The 1-bp duplication causes a frameshift leading to a stable transcript with a premature stop codon after seven TGF-β2-unrelated amino acids (p.Ser389Lysfs*8). As the resulting protein is unlikely functional and by considering data from the literature, we support the notion that functional haploinsufficiency for TGF-β2 predisposes to thoracic aortic disease. Taken together, TGFB2 is a rarely mutated gene in patients with syndromic TAAD, and the clinical features of our TGFB2 mutation-positive individuals fit in the scheme of LDS, rather than MFS-related disorders.
| S-EPMC4060107 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Thoracic aortic aneurysm (TAA) outcomes are worse in women than men, although reasons for sex differences are unknown. Because faster TAA growth is a risk factor for acute aortic syndromes, we sought to determine the role of sex and aneurysm etiology on TAA growth.Eighty-two consecutive unoperated subjects with TAA who had serial aneurysm measurements were recruited. In multivariable linear regression the association of female sex with aneurysm growth rate was assessed after adjustment for potential confounders. We also tested the interaction term sex×aneurysm etiology in the prediction of TAA growth. Seventy-four percent of subjects were men; mean±SD age was 62.4±11.9 years in men and 67.7±10.7 years in women (P=0.06). Forty-seven (57%) subjects had degenerative TAAs, and the remainder had heritable TAAs. Absolute baseline aneurysm size and follow-up time were not different between men and women. Aneurysm growth rate was 1.19±1.15 mm/y in women and 0.59±0.66 mm/y in men (P=0.02). Female sex remained significantly associated with greater aneurysm growth in multivariable analyses (β±SE: 0.35±0.12, P=0.005). In addition, female sex was associated with faster TAA growth only among those with degenerative TAA (β±SE: 0.33±0.08, P=0.0002) and not among those with heritable TAA (P=0.79), with a significant sex×etiology interaction (P=0.001).TAA growth rates are greater in women than men, and this difference is specific to women with degenerative TAAs. Our findings may explain sex differences in TAA outcomes and provide a foundation for future investigations of this topic.
| S-EPMC5523737 | biostudies-other
Project description:Thoracic aortic aneurysms (TAAs) develop secondary to abnormal aortic extracellular matrix remodeling, resulting in a weakened and dilated aortic wall that progressed to rupture if left unattended. Currently, no diagnostic/prognostic tests are available for the detection of TAA disease. This is largely driven by the lack of a large animal model, which would permit longitudinal/mechanistic studies. Accordingly, the objective of the present study was to establish a reproducible porcine model of aortic dilatation, which recapitulates the structural and biochemical changes observed during human TAA development.Descending TAAs were induced in Yorkshire pigs (20-25 kg; n=7) through intra-adventitial injections of collagenase (5 mL, 0.35 mg/mL) and periadventitial application of crystalline CaCl2 (0.5 g). Three weeks after TAA induction, aortas were harvested and tissue was collected for biochemical and histological measurements. A subset of animals underwent MRI preoperatively and at terminal surgery. Results were compared with sham-operated controls (n=6). Three weeks after TAA induction, aortic luminal area increased by 38 ± 13% (P=0.018 versus control). Aortic structural changes included elastic lamellar degradation and decreased collagen content. The protein abundance of matrix metalloproteinases 3, 8, 9, and 12 increased in TAA tissue homogenates, whereas tissue inhibitors of metalloproteinases 1 and 4 decreased.These data demonstrate aortic dilatation, aortic medial degeneration, and alterations in matrix metalloproteinase/tissue inhibitors of metalloproteinase abundance, consistent with TAA formation. This study establishes for the first time a large animal model of TAA that recapitulates the hallmarks of human disease and provides a reproducible test bed for examining diagnostic, prognostic, and therapeutic strategies.
| S-EPMC3840947 | biostudies-literature