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Transcriptomic profiling of vegfc(hy-/-);vegfd(-/-) mutant hearts reveals that vegfc/d signaling and lymphatics vasculature play a role in cardiac metabolism [fresh tissue]

ABSTRACT: Recent studies have suggested that promoting lymphangiogenesis enhances cardiac repair following injury, but it is unknown whether lymphangiogenesis is required for cardiac regeneration. Here, we describe the anatomical distribution, regulation and function of the cardiac lymphatic network in a highly regenerative zebrafish model system using transgenic reporter lines and loss-of-function approaches.To understand the transcriptional profile of the model, we performed RNA-seq on cardiac ventricles from control and mutant (vegfc(hy-/-);vegfd(-/-)) ventricles. Overall, vegfc(hy-/-;vegfd-/-) mutant ventricles were characterized by an up-regulation of pathways related to sphingolipid and phospholipid metabolism, translation, protein maturation and nonsense mediated decay compared to control hearts. Our findings suggest that lymphatics vasculature play a role in lipid transport and when lymphatic function is compromised in vegfch(y-/-;vegfd-/-) mutant, there are consequences to sphingolipid and phospholipid metabolism. Vegfc(hy-/-;vegfd-/-) mutant ventricles were not characterized by an enrichment of genes pathways implicated in pathological hypertrophy. This finding suggests that the absence of cardiac lymphatics induced a physiological rather than pathological cardiac hypertrophy.

ORGANISM(S): Danio rerio

PROVIDER: GSE133130 | GEO | 2019/09/03

REPOSITORIES: GEO

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Project description:To determine whether lymphangiogenesis is required for cardiac regeneration, vegfc(hy-/-);vegfd(-/-) double mutants and control hearts were collected and analyzed at 180 days after cryoinjury, this corresponds to a time point when the regenerative response is normally completed in wild-type zebrafish. Surprisingly, the vast majority (~70%) of vegfc(hy-/-);vegfd(-/-) mutants, which completely lack cardiac lymphatics, were able to mount a complete regenerative response without any signs of fibrosis. We found that the cardiac regenerative response was impaired only in a subset (3/8) of vegfc(hy-/-);vegfd(-/-) mutants, which were characterized by large deposits of fibrotic scar tissue present at the injury site. To profile vegfc/d-dependent genetic pathways contributing to lymphangiogenesis in cardiac regeneration, we performed RNA-seq on cryosections from control and mutant ventricles at 180 days following cryoinjury. Overall, vegfc(hy-/-);vegfd(-/-) mutant ventricles were characterized by an up-regulation of pathways related to metabolism, inflammation, hemostasis, negative regulation of FGFR signaling, translation, protein maturation and nonsense mediated decay compared to control hearts. These findings are consistent with the cardiac hypertrophy phenotype in vegfc(hy-/-);vegfd(-/-) mutants. To determine the molecular basis of the regenerative capacity within the mutant fish population, we next compared the transcriptional profiles of vegfc(hy-/-);vegfd(-/-) mutant hearts that did not regenerate (n=3) with the profiles of mutant hearts which recovered completely (n=5) at 180 days post cryoinjury. The subset of vegfc(hy-/-);vegfd(-/-) mutant hearts that failed to regenerate were characterized by an enrichment of inflammatory pathways, in particular TRAF6-mediated IRF7 activation, interferon alpha beta signaling and regulation of IFNA signaling. These findings suggest that loss of the vegfc/d signaling axis causes a sustained and pronounced inflammatory response following injury. This change in the cardiac micro-environment seems to favor adverse conditions which impair the regenerative process.

Project description:Aberrant repair after musculoskeletal injury is one of the most costly and common clinical scenarios in health care. While advances in our understanding of the key cells and pathways during the repair process have improved, there remains a gap in knowledge of the key progenitor cells and their interaction with the surrounding microenvironment. Heterotopic ossification (HO) is a pathological process caused by aberrant cell-fate determination resulting in the formation of bone in non-skeletal tissues after musculoskeletal injury. While the involvement of blood vessels in musculoskeletal repair is well-documented, the role of lymphatic vessels and the cells responsible for their ingrowth in musculoskeletal tissues during both homeostasis and after injury remains poorly understood. In this study, we employed a mouse model of traumatic HO to investigate lymphangiogenesis during musculoskeletal injury and repair and to uncover the key progenitor cells responsible to stimulate lymphangiogenesis and undergo aberrant cell fate differentiation. Our findings demonstrated that musculoskeletal injury triggered lymphangiogenesis at the injury site, including invasion of lymphatic vessels into the tendon proper. This increased lymphangiogenesis was driven by elevated levels of active Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor C (VEGF-C) one-week post-injury. Through single-cell transcriptomic analyses, we identified mesenchymal progenitor cells (MPCs) as a source of Vegfc following injury as well as the source of enzymes responsible for activating VEGF-C. These Vegfc-expressing MPCs underwent osteochondral differentiation and actively contributed to the formation of HO following injury. Notably, Vegfc haploinsufficiency resulted in a near 50% reduction in lymphangiogenesis and HO formation. Collectively, these findings suggest that MPC expression of VEGF-C and its activating enzymes in response to soft tissue trauma play a critical role in stimulating pathologic lymphatic vessel growth. Furthermore, Vegfc expressing MPCs undergo aberrant osteochondral differentiation responsible for HO. Targeting Vegfc expression and Vegfc-expressing progenitors therapeutically could potentially mitigate pathologic lymphangiogenesis, preventing aberrant tissue repair and subsequent HO formation.

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Transcriptomic profiling of vegfc(hy-/-);vegfd(-/-) mutant hearts reveals that vegfc/d signaling and lymphatics vasculature play a role in cardiac metabolism [fresh tissue]

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