Project description:Vascular calcification is a hallmark of atherosclerosis and end-stage renal disease (ESRD). However, the molecular mechanism of vascular calcification is poorly understood. Diabetes mellitus is increasingly recognized as the most important cause for atherosclerosis and ESRD. Emerging evidence supports the concept that vascular calcification resembles the process of osteogenesis, in which the vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMC) undergo osteochondrogenic differentiation. Recently, we have established an in vitro calcification system with primary mouse VSMC. With the use of osteogenic stimuli, we induced trans-differentiation of primary mouse VSMC into bone-like cells. Interestingly stroptozotocin (STZ), O-GlcNAcase inhibitor and a drug that has been used to induce diabetes in mice, was able to induce calcification of VSMC and the expression of the osteogenic transcription factor Runx2, suggesting glycosylation may be involved in regulation of Runx2. We have reported an essential role of Runx2 in oxidative stress-induce VSMC calcification and have recently generated a tissue specific mouse with Runx2 ablation in smooth muscle cells. Therefore, we will use STZ and other relevant reagents in the glucose synthesis/metabolism pathways as stimuli for VSMC calcification to characterize the glycogene profiles during VSMC calcification. Results from VSMC of Runx2 knockout mice will be compared with those from control mice to determine the regulation of calcification-associated glycogenes by Runx2 in response to STZ. These studies will provide foundation for further mechanistic studies and may lead to identification of novel strategies and targets for diabetes-induced vascular calcification. To examine vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMC) under two conditions: 1) wild-type VSMC differentiated into bone-like cells with osteogenic media, 2) wild-type VSMC treated with STZ and osteogenic media
Project description:Smooth muscle cells (SMCs) are important in a number of physiological systems and organs, including the cardiovascular system. The hallmark property of differentiated SMCs is the ability to contract, but contractile SMCs themselves show a range of phenotypes allowing prolonged tonic contraction in vascular smooth muscle or rapid phasic contraction in tissues such as bladder. Another distinctive characteristic, in contrast with terminally differentiated striated muscle cells, is that SMCs exhibit phenotypic plasticity. Vascular SMCs are able to modulate their phenotype along a continuum between a contractile phenotype, characteristic of healthy blood vessels, and a more proliferative âsyntheticâ phenotype, so-named for the enhanced synthesis and secretion of extracellular matrix components. Synthetic phenotype cells are found in a number of pathological situations such as atherosclerosis and arterial injury. We used mouse exon-junction (MJAY) arrays to gain insights into both the global contribution of alternative splicing events in re-shaping the transcriptome of dedifferentiating mouse aorta and bladder SMCs, and into the underlying regulatory mechanisms of the alternative splicing program. Affymetrix splice junction arrays (MJAY) were used to profile changes in both alternative splicing and transcript levels during the phenotypic modulation of smooth muscle cells when placed in culture. RNA extracted from intact aorta and bladder smooth muscle tissue was used for differentiated samples. For dedifferentiated, proliferative samples smooth muscle cells were enzymatically dispersed and grown in tissue culture for a week. Triplicate RNA samples were prepared from smooth muscle tissue of mouse aorta and bladder (differentiated) and from smooth muscle cells from each tissue cultured for 7 days (proliferative). The samples allowed comparison of alternative splicing (and other transcriptome) changes between differentiated and proliferative smooth muscle cell samples from two distinct types of smooth muscle cell, as well as allowing direct comparison of aorta (tonic smooth muscle) and bladder (phasic smooth muscle).
Project description:Vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs) are derived from distinct embryonic origins. Vessels originating from differing smooth muscle cell populations have distinct vascular and pathological properties of calcification, atherosclerosis, and structural defects such as aneurysm and coarctation. We hypothesized that domains within a vessel vary in phenotype based on embryonic origin. We used microarrays to detail the expression differences in vasculature of different embryonic origin. Mouse tissues were selected from different vascular compartments for RNA extraction and hybridization on Affymetrix microarrays. We sought to identify embryonic origin-specific expression profiles.
Project description:Vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs) are derived from distinct embryonic origins. Vessels originating from differing smooth muscle cell populations have distinct vascular and pathological properties of calcification, atherosclerosis, and structural defects such as aneurysm and coarctation. We hypothesized that domains within a vessel vary in phenotype based on embryonic origin. We used microarrays to detail the expression differences in vasculature of different embryonic origin. Mouse tissues were selected from different vascular compartments for RNA extraction and hybridization on Affymetrix microarrays. We sought to identify embryonic origin-specific expression profiles.
Project description:Vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs) are derived from distinct embryonic origins. Vessels originating from differing smooth muscle cell populations have distinct vascular and pathological properties of calcification, atherosclerosis, and structural defects such as aneurysm and coarctation. We hypothesized that domains within a vessel vary in phenotype based on embryonic origin. We used microarrays to detail the expression differences in vasculature of different embryonic origin.
Project description:Vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs) are derived from distinct embryonic origins. Vessels originating from differing smooth muscle cell populations have distinct vascular and pathological properties of calcification, atherosclerosis, and structural defects such as aneurysm and coarctation. We hypothesized that domains within a vessel vary in phenotype based on embryonic origin. We used microarrays to detail the expression differences in vasculature of different embryonic origin.
Project description:Vascular smooth muscle cell (VSMC) subpopulations relevant to vascular disease and injury repair have been depicted in healthy vessels and atherosclerosis profiles. However, whether VSMC subpopulation associated with vascular homeostasis exists in the healthy artery and how are their nature and fate in vascular remodeling remains elusive. Here, using single-cell RNA-sequencing (scRNA-seq) to detect VSMC functional heterogeneity in an unbiased manner, we showed that VSMC subpopulations in healthy artery presented transcriptome diversity and that there was significant heterogeneity in differentiation state and development within each subpopulation. Notably, we detected an independent subpopulation of VSMCs that highly expressed regulator of G protein signaling 5 (Rgs5), upregulated the genes associated with inhibition of cell proliferation and construction of cytoskeleton compared with the general subpopulation, and mainly enriched in descending aorta. Additionally, the proportion of Rgs5+ VSMCs was markedly decreased or almost disappeared in the vascular tissues of neointimal formation, abdominal aortic aneurysm and atherosclerosis. Specific spatiotemporal characterization of Rgs5+ VSMC subpopulation suggested that this subpopulation was implicated in vascular homeostasis. Together, our analyses identify homeostasis-relevant transcriptional signatures of VSMC subpopulations in healthy artery, which may explain the regional vascular resistance to atherosclerosis at some extent.
Project description:Chaperone-mediated autophagy (CMA) contributes to regulation of energy homeostasis by timely degradation of enzymes involved in glucose and lipid metabolism. Here, we report reduced CMA activity in vascular smooth muscle cells and macrophages in murine and human arteries in response to atherosclerotic challenges. We show that in vivo genetic blockage of CMA worsens atherosclerotic pathology through both systemic and cell-autonomous changes in vascular smooth muscle cells and macrophages, the two main cell types involved in atherogenesis. CMA deficiency promotes dedifferentiation of vascular smooth muscle cells and a pro-inflammatory state in macrophages. Conversely, a genetic mouse model with upregulated CMA shows lower vulnerability to the pro-atherosclerotic challenge. We propose that CMA could be an attractive therapeutic target against cardiovascular diseases.