scholarly journals Convergence of VEGF and YAP/TAZ signaling: Implications for angiogenesis and cancer biology

2018 ◽  
Vol 11 (552) ◽  
pp. eaau1165 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ameer L. Elaimy ◽  
Arthur M. Mercurio
Keyword(s):  
Endothelial Cells ◽  
Tumor Cells ◽  
Cancer Biology ◽  
Vascular Endothelial ◽  
Vascular Growth ◽  
Vegf Signaling ◽  
Pathological Angiogenesis ◽  
Cytoskeletal Dynamics ◽  
Rho Family ◽  
Endothelial Growth Factor

Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) stimulates endothelial cells to promote both developmental and pathological angiogenesis. VEGF also directly affects tumor cells and is associated with the initiation, progression, and recurrence of tumors, as well as the emergence and maintenance of cancer stem cells (CSCs). Studies have uncovered the importance of the transcriptional regulators YAP and TAZ in mediating VEGF signaling. For example, VEGF stimulates the GTPase activity of Rho family members and thereby alters cytoskeletal dynamics, which contributes to the activation of YAP and TAZ. In turn, YAP- and TAZ-mediated changes in gene expression sustain Rho family member activity and cytoskeletal effects to promote both vascular growth and remodeling in endothelial cells and the acquisition of stem-like traits in tumor cells. In this Review, we discuss how these findings further explain the pathophysiological roles of VEGF and YAP/TAZ, identify their connections to other receptor-mediated pathways, and reveal ways of therapeutically targeting their convergent signals in patients.

Characterization of the vasculogenic block in the absence of vascular endothelial growth factor-A

Blood ◽  
2000 ◽  
Vol 95 (6) ◽  
pp. 1979-1987 ◽  
Author(s):  
Victoria L. Bautch ◽  
Sambra D. Redick ◽  
Aaron Scalia ◽  
Marco Harmaty ◽  
Peter Carmeliet ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor ◽  
Endothelial Cells ◽  
Growth Factor ◽  
Embryonic Stem ◽  
Dependent Manner ◽  
Vascular Endothelial ◽  
Vegf Signaling ◽  
Homozygous Mutant ◽  
Endothelial Growth Factor ◽  
Rna Levels

Abstract Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) signaling is required for both differentiation and proliferation of vascular endothelium. Analysis of differentiated embryonic stem cells with one or both VEGF-A alleles deleted showed that both the differentiation and the expansion of endothelial cells are blocked during vasculogenesis. Blood island formation was reduced by half in hemizygous mutant VEGF cultures and by 10-fold in homozygous mutant VEGF cultures. Homozygous mutant cultures could be partially rescued by the addition of exogenous VEGF. RNA levels for the endothelial adhesion receptors ICAM-2 and PECAM were reduced in homozygous mutant cultures, but ICAM-2 RNA levels decreased substantially, whereas PECAM RNA levels remained at hemizygous levels. The quantitative data correlated with the antibody staining patterns because cells that were not organized into vessels expressed PECAM but not ICAM-2. These PECAM+ cell clumps accumulated in mutant cultures as vessel density decreased, suggesting that they were endothelial cell precursors blocked from maturation. A subset of PECAM+ cells in clumps expressed stage-specific embryonic antigen-1 (SSEA-1), and all were ICAM-2(−) and CD34(−), whereas vascular endothelial cells incorporated into vessels were PECAM(+), ICAM-2(+), CD34(+), and SSEA-1(−). Analysis of flk-1 expression indicated that a subset of vascular precursor cells coexpressed PECAM and flk-1. These data suggest that VEGF signaling acts in a dose-dependent manner to affect both a specific differentiation step and the subsequent expansion of endothelial cells.

scholarly journals Effect of PTK/ZK on the Angiogenic Switch in Head and Neck Tumors

2008 ◽  
Vol 87 (12) ◽  
pp. 1166-1171 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. Miyazawa ◽  
Z. Dong ◽  
Z. Zhang ◽  
K.G. Neiva ◽  
M.M. Cordeiro ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor ◽  
Endothelial Cells ◽  
Head And Neck ◽  
Vascular Endothelial ◽  
Head And Neck Tumor ◽  
Angiogenic Switch ◽  
Vegf Signaling ◽  
Neck Tumor ◽  
Neck Tumors ◽  
Endothelial Growth Factor

Transformation of small avascular masses of tumor cells into rapidly progressive cancers is triggered by the angiogenic switch, a process that involves vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) signaling. We have shown that VEGF enhances the survival and angiogenic potential of endothelial cells by activating the Bcl-2-CXCL8 signaling axis. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of a small-molecule inhibitor of VEGF receptors (PTK/ZK) on the initial stages of head and neck tumor angiogenesis. In vitro, PTK/ZK blocked head and neck tumor cell (OSCC3 or UM-SCC-17B)-induced Bcl-2 and CXCL8 expression in endothelial cells. Oral administration of PTK/ZK decreased xenograft head and neck tumor microvessel density, and inhibited Bcl-2 and CXCL8 expression in tumor-associated endothelial cells. Analysis of these data demonstrates that PTK/ZK blocks downstream targets of VEGF signaling in endothelial cells, and suggests that PTK/ZK may inhibit the angiogenic switch in head and neck tumors. Abbreviations: HDMEC, human dermal microvascular endothelial cells; VEGF, vascular endothelial growth factor; CXCL8, CXC ligand-8; PTK/ZK, PTK787/ZK222584.

scholarly journals Angiogenic factor signaling regulates centrosome duplication in endothelial cells of developing blood vessels

Blood ◽  
2010 ◽  
Vol 116 (16) ◽  
pp. 3108-3117 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sarah M. Taylor ◽  
Kathleen R. Nevis ◽  
Hannah L. Park ◽  
Gregory C. Rogers ◽  
Stephen L. Rogers ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Endothelial Cells ◽  
Endothelial Cell ◽  
Angiogenic Factors ◽  
Angiogenic Factor ◽  
Centrosome Duplication ◽  
Vascular Endothelial ◽  
Vegf Signaling ◽  
Vessel Networks ◽  
Endothelial Growth Factor ◽  
Cellular Dysfunction

Abstract Regulated vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) signaling is required for proper angiogenesis, and excess VEGF signaling results in aberrantly formed vessels that do not function properly. Tumor endothelial cells have excess centrosomes and are aneuploid, properties that probably contribute to the morphologic and functional abnormalities of tumor vessels. We hypothesized that endothelial cell centrosome number is regulated by signaling via angiogenic factors, such as VEGF. We found that endothelial cells in developing vessels exposed to elevated VEGF signaling display centrosome overduplication. Signaling from VEGF, through either MEK/ERK or AKT to cyclin E/Cdk2, is amplified in association with centrosome overduplication, and blockade of relevant pathway components rescued the centrosome overduplication defect. Endothelial cells exposed to elevated FGF also had excess centrosomes, suggesting that multiple angiogenic factors regulate centrosome number. Endothelial cells with excess centrosomes survived and formed aberrant spindles at mitosis. Developing vessels exposed to elevated VEGF signaling also exhibited increased aneuploidy of endothelial cells, which is associated with cellular dysfunction. These results provide the first link between VEGF signaling and regulation of the centrosome duplication cycle, and suggest that endothelial cell centrosome overduplication contributes to aberrant angiogenesis in developing vessel networks exposed to excess angiogenic factors.

scholarly journals Mechanoregulation of Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor Receptor 2 in Angiogenesis

2022 ◽  
Vol 8 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bronte Miller ◽  
Mary Kathryn Sewell-Loftin
Keyword(s):  
Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor ◽  
Endothelial Cells ◽  
Growth Factor ◽  
Blood Vessel ◽  
Mechanical Forces ◽  
Vascular Endothelial ◽  
Vascular Growth ◽  
Disease States ◽  
Biomechanical Forces ◽  
Endothelial Growth Factor

The endothelial cells that compose the vascular system in the body display a wide range of mechanotransductive behaviors and responses to biomechanical stimuli, which act in concert to control overall blood vessel structure and function. Such mechanosensitive activities allow blood vessels to constrict, dilate, grow, or remodel as needed during development as well as normal physiological functions, and the same processes can be dysregulated in various disease states. Mechanotransduction represents cellular responses to mechanical forces, translating such factors into chemical or electrical signals which alter the activation of various cell signaling pathways. Understanding how biomechanical forces drive vascular growth in healthy and diseased tissues could create new therapeutic strategies that would either enhance or halt these processes to assist with treatments of different diseases. In the cardiovascular system, new blood vessel formation from preexisting vasculature, in a process known as angiogenesis, is driven by vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) binding to VEGF receptor 2 (VEGFR-2) which promotes blood vessel development. However, physical forces such as shear stress, matrix stiffness, and interstitial flow are also major drivers and effectors of angiogenesis, and new research suggests that mechanical forces may regulate VEGFR-2 phosphorylation. In fact, VEGFR-2 activation has been linked to known mechanobiological agents including ERK/MAPK, c-Src, Rho/ROCK, and YAP/TAZ. In vascular disease states, endothelial cells can be subjected to altered mechanical stimuli which affect the pathways that control angiogenesis. Both normalizing and arresting angiogenesis associated with tumor growth have been strategies for anti-cancer treatments. In the field of regenerative medicine, harnessing biomechanical regulation of angiogenesis could enhance vascularization strategies for treating a variety of cardiovascular diseases, including ischemia or permit development of novel tissue engineering scaffolds. This review will focus on the impact of VEGFR-2 mechanosignaling in endothelial cells (ECs) and its interaction with other mechanotransductive pathways, as well as presenting a discussion on the relationship between VEGFR-2 activation and biomechanical forces in the extracellular matrix (ECM) that can help treat diseases with dysfunctional vascular growth.

scholarly journals Telocytes are major constituents of the angiogenic apparatus

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Soha A. Soliman
Keyword(s):  
Electron Microscopy ◽  
Endothelial Cells ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Vascular Endothelial ◽  
Vascular Growth ◽  
Transmission Electron ◽  
Dimensional Network ◽  
And Migration ◽  
Endothelial Growth Factor

AbstractThe current study investigated role of telocytes (TCs) in angiogenesis during embryonic development of quail using immunohistochemistry (IHC), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The angiogenic apparatus consisted of TCs, endothelial cells, and macrophages. TCs were identified morphologically by their telopodes and podoms using TEM and SEM and immunohistochemically using CD34, and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF). TCs also expressed CD68. TCs formed a three-dimensional network and established direct contact with blood vessels, sprouting endothelial cells, and active macrophages, while exerting their effect through paracrine signaling. VEGF was also expressed by endothelial cells and macrophages. Matrix metalloproteinase–9 (MMP-9) was expressed by TCs, endothelial cells, and macrophages. In conclusion, the expression of VEGF by TCs, endothelial cells, and macrophages is required for the proliferation and migration of endothelial cells and vascular growth. The expression of MMP-9 by TCs, endothelial cells, and macrophages is essential for the degradation of extracellular matrix (ECM) components during neoangiogenesis. Macrophages may facilitate phagocytosis and elimination of the degraded ECM components.

scholarly journals Suppression of Development of Ankylosing Spondylitis Through Soluble Flt-1

2015 ◽  
Vol 37 (6) ◽  
pp. 2135-2142 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zhongxiang Yu ◽  
Yuting Zhang ◽  
Ningyang Gao ◽  
Kuang Yong
Keyword(s):  
Endothelial Cells ◽  
Ankylosing Spondylitis ◽  
Vegf Receptor ◽  
Dependent Manner ◽  
Vascular Endothelial ◽  
Treatment Results ◽  
Vegf Signaling ◽  
Before And After ◽  
Endothelial Growth Factor ◽  
Pro Inflammatory Cytokines

Background/Aims: Circulating monocytes/macrophages are origins of osteoclasts that mediate the development of ankylosing spondylitis (AS). Moreover, infiltrated macrophages facilitate the AS progression through production and secretion of pro-inflammatory cytokines. Thus, suppression of the recruitment of circulating monocytes/macrophages may be an effective AS treatment, which is, however, not available so far in clinic. Soluble fms-like tyrosine kinase-1 (sFlt-1) is a decoy receptor for vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) to compete with VEGF receptor (VEGFR2) for VEGF binding in endothelial cells, while its application in treating AS and effects on the recruitment of circulating monocytes/macrophages has not been reported before. Methods: We used a proteoglycan-induced arthritis (PGIA) mouse model for human AS. We injected sFlt-1 into the articular cavity and evaluated its effects on PGIA by incidence of arthritis, and clinical and pathological arthritis severity. We isolated and analyzed macrophages and endothelial cells in the articular cavity before and after treatment. Results: Injection of sFlt-1 significantly decreased the incidence and severity of PGIA in mice, and significantly reduced the number of infiltrated macrophages, possibly through reduction of vessel permeability, in a VEGFR2-dependent manner. Conclusion: Our data suggest that sFlt-1 may have a therapeutic effect on AS, resulting from suppression of VEGF signaling-mediated recruitment of circulating monocytes/macrophages.

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