Project description:Vascular remodeling is the process of structural alteration and cell rearrangement of blood vessels in response to injury and is the cause of many of the world's most afflicted cardiovascular conditions, including pulmonary arterial hypertension(PAH). Many studies have focused on the effects of vascular endothelial cells and smooth muscle cells(SMCs) during vascular remodeling, but pericytes, an indispensable cell population residing largely in capillaries, are ignored in this maladaptive process. Here we report that hypoxia-inducible factor 2α(HIF2α) expression is increased in human PAH patient lung tissues and HIF2α overexpressed pericytes result in greater contractility and an impaired endothelial-pericyte interaction. Using single-cell RNAseq and hypoxia-induced pulmonary hypertension(PH) models, we show HIF2α as a major molecular regulator for pericytes’ transformation into SMC-like cells. HIF2α overexpression in pericyte-selective mice exacerbate PH and right ventricular hypertrophy. Temporal cellular lineage tracing shows that HIF2α overexpressing reporter NG2+ cells (pericyte-selective) relocate from capillaries to arterioles and co-express SMA. This novel insight into the potential role of NG2+ pericytes in pulmonary vascular remodeling via HIF2α signaling suggests a potential drug target for PH.
Project description:Using a combination of single-cell RNAseq methods and murine pulmonary hypertension models, we show HIF2α overexpressing pericytes’ transformation into SMC-like cells, confirming HIF2α as a major molecular regulator in hypoxia-induced pulmonary hypertension (PH) and vascular remodeling. We demonstrate that HIF2α overexpression in pericyte-dominant transgenic mice exacerbates PH and right ventricular hypertrophy (RVH), whereas disruption of HIF2α expression attenuates the development of PH.
Project description:Pericytes/vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs), regulated by platelet-derived growth factor receptor β (PDGFRβ) signaling, play important roles in endothelial survival and vascular stability. Here we report that treatment with imatinib, an inhibitor of PDGFRβ, led to significant tumor growth impairment associated with increased apoptosis in human lymphoma xenografts including Farage, Karpas422 and OCI-Ly7 in SCID mice. Confocal analysis of the tumor tissue showed decreased microvessel density, decreased vascular flow, and increased vascular leak in the imatinib-treated cohorts. Imatinib targeted tumor-associated PDGFRβ+ pericytes in vivo by inducing apoptosis and disruption of the PDGFRβ+ perivascular network, and PDGFRβ+ VSMC in vitro by inhibition of proliferation. FACS analysis of mononuclear cell suspension of tumor tissues revealed decreased mature pericytes and endothelial cells, as well as their progenitors with imatinib treatment. Compared to imatinib, treatment with anti-PDGFRβ monoclonal antibody partially inhibited the growth of Farage lymphomas. Lastly, microarray analysis of differentially expressed genes in PDGFRβ+ VSMC following imatinib treatment showed significant down-regulation of genes implicated in proliferation, survival and angiogenesis, including those within PI3K/AKT and MAPK/ERK1/2 pathways downstream of PDGFRβ signaling. Taken together, targeting PDGFRβ+ pericytes in lymphoma presents a novel and complementary target to endothelial cells for efficacious antiangiogenic therapy. PDGFRb+ murine vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs) were treated in 10 uM imatinib for 24 or 48 hours. Gene expression changes in response to imatinib treatment were examined using NimbleGen MM8_60mer gene expression microarrays by comparing expression patterns at 24- and 48-hours treatment to the baseline level (0 hours).
Project description:Pericytes have been implicated in regulation of inflammatory, reparative, fibrogenic and angiogenic responses in several different organs and pathologic conditions. Although the adult mammalian heart contains abundant pericytes, their fate and involvement in myocardial disease remains unknown. We used NG2Dsred;PDGFRaEGFP pericyte-fibroblast dual reporter mice and inducible NG2CreER mice to study the fate and phenotypic modulation of pericytes in a model of myocardial infarction. The transcriptomic profile of pericyte-derived fibroblasts was studied using PCR arrays. The transcriptomic profile of NG2 lineage cells (pericytes) was studied in control and infarcted hearts using single cell RNA-sequencing analysis. The role of TGF-b signaling in regulation of pericyte phenotype in vivo was investigated using pericyte-specific Tgfbr2 knockout mice. In vitro, the effects of TGF-b were studied in cultured human placental pericytes.In normal mouse hearts, NG2 and PDGFRa identified distinct non-overlapping populations of pericytes and fibroblasts respectively. Following myocardial infarction, a population of cells expressing both pericyte and fibroblast markers emerged. These cells expressed large amounts of extracellular matrix (ECM) genes. Lineage tracing demonstrated that in the infarcted region, a subpopulation of pericytes underwent fibroblast conversion. Single cell RNA-seq experiments demonstrated expansion and diversification of pericyte-derived cells in the infarct, associated with emergence of subpopulations exhibiting accentuated matrix gene synthesis. In vitro studies and the profile of pericyte-derived fibroblasts identified TGF-b as a potentially causative mediator in fibrogenic activation of infarct pericytes. However, pericyte-specific Tgfbr2 disruption had no significant effects on myofibroblast infiltration and collagen deposition in the infarct. Pericyte-specific TGF-b signaling was involved in vascular maturation, mediating formation of a mural cell coat investing infarct neovessels. These reparative effects of infarct pericytes protected the infarcted heart from dilative remodeling.
Project description:Pericytes/vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs), regulated by platelet-derived growth factor receptor β (PDGFRβ) signaling, play important roles in endothelial survival and vascular stability. Here we report that treatment with imatinib, an inhibitor of PDGFRβ, led to significant tumor growth impairment associated with increased apoptosis in human lymphoma xenografts including Farage, Karpas422 and OCI-Ly7 in SCID mice. Confocal analysis of the tumor tissue showed decreased microvessel density, decreased vascular flow, and increased vascular leak in the imatinib-treated cohorts. Imatinib targeted tumor-associated PDGFRβ+ pericytes in vivo by inducing apoptosis and disruption of the PDGFRβ+ perivascular network, and PDGFRβ+ VSMC in vitro by inhibition of proliferation. FACS analysis of mononuclear cell suspension of tumor tissues revealed decreased mature pericytes and endothelial cells, as well as their progenitors with imatinib treatment. Compared to imatinib, treatment with anti-PDGFRβ monoclonal antibody partially inhibited the growth of Farage lymphomas. Lastly, microarray analysis of differentially expressed genes in PDGFRβ+ VSMC following imatinib treatment showed significant down-regulation of genes implicated in proliferation, survival and angiogenesis, including those within PI3K/AKT and MAPK/ERK1/2 pathways downstream of PDGFRβ signaling. Taken together, targeting PDGFRβ+ pericytes in lymphoma presents a novel and complementary target to endothelial cells for efficacious antiangiogenic therapy.
Project description:Despite the prevalence of pericytes amongst the microvasculature of the heart, the role of pericytes during ischemia-induced remodeling remains unclear. Using chondroitin sulfate proteoglycan 4 (Cspg4) lineage mouse reporters we observed pericytes migrating to the site of injury, expressing pro-fibrotic genes, and causing increased vessel leakage after myocardial infarction. Single cell RNA-sequencing of injured cardiac pericytes exhibited increased expression of genes related to vascular permeability, extracellular matrix production, basement membrane degradation and transforming growth factor-b (TGFb) signaling. Deletion of TGFb receptor 1 in Cspg4-expressing cells improved cardiac ejection fraction and reduced fibrosis post-MI. Whereas genetic ablation of Cspg4-expressing cells resulted in a rapid decline in cardiac function and increased vascular permeability following MI. Collectively, we show that cardiac pericytes participate in the post-fibrotic response after acute ischemic injury, information that will help guide the development of novel strategies to preserve vascular integrity and attenuate cardiac fibrosis.
Project description:Tumor necrosis factor alpha induces vascular permeability, playing an important role in inflammation. Also, TNF-induced vascular leakage is involved in the increased extravasation of nanoparticle formulated chemotherapeutics improving drug delivery and subsequently tumor response, and we found a positive correlation between the presence of pericytes in the tumor-associated vasculature and TNF-induced leakage. RNA sequencing and pathway analysis of TNF-stimulated versus non-stimulated pericytes and endothelial cells show significant upregulation of several pathways involving interferon regulating pathways with a high expression of CXCL10, also known as Interferon gamma-inducible protein 10 (IP-10) in TNF-stimulated pericytes. In addition, CXCL10 protein production was significantly increased in conditioned medium from TNF-exposed pericytes compared to the other conditions. In our animal studies, we observed that tumor types with high pericyte covered vessels show enhanced permeability when exposed to TNF, which can be blocked with a neutralizing CXCL10 antibody. Vice versa, tumors with vessels low in pericyte number do not respond to TNF, i.e., do not express elevated permeability. Importantly, this lack of pericyte coverage can be compensated by co-administration of CXCL10. Our finding reveals a mechanism where TNF induces CXCL10 release from pericytes, being at the basis of increased permeability and thus vascular leakage.