Epigenetic regulation by Polycomb Repressive Complex 1 promotes Cerebral Cavernous Malformations
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ABSTRACT: Cerebral cavernous malformations (CCMs) are anomalies that develop mainly in the cerebral vasculature. They result from mutations in CCM1/KRIT1, CCM2, or CCM3/PDCD10. Loss of CCM proteins triggers a MAPK-Krüppel-like factor 2 (KLF2) signaling cascade, which induces a pathophysiological pattern of gene expression within endothelial cells. The downstream target genes that are activated by KLF2 are mostly unknown. Here we show that Chromobox Protein Homolog 7 (CBX7), component of the Polycomb Repressive Complex 1, contributes to pathophysiological KLF2 signaling during zebrafish cardiovascular development. CBX7/cbx7a mRNA is strongly upregulated in lesions of CCM patients, and in human, mouse, and zebrafish CCM-deficient endothelial cells. The silencing or pharmacological inhibition of CBX7/Cbx7a suppresses pathological CCM phenotypes in ccm2 zebrafish, CCM2-deficient HUVECs, and in a pre-clinical murine CCM3 disease model. Whole-transcriptome datasets from zebrafish cardiovascular tissues and human endothelial cells reveal that CBX7/Cbx7a plays a role in the activation of KLF2 targets including genes encoding TEK, Angiopoietin1, WNT9, and endoMT proteins. Our findings uncover an intricate interplay in the regulation of Klf2-dependent biomechanical signaling by CBX7 in CCM. This work also provides insights for therapeutic strategies in the pathogenesis of CCM.
ORGANISM(S): Danio rerio
PROVIDER: GSE277234 | GEO | 2024/09/20
REPOSITORIES: GEO
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