Multiple growth factors are released from mechanically injured vascular smooth muscle cells

1995 ◽  
Vol 269 (5) ◽  
pp. H1641-H1647 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. T. Crowley ◽  
C. J. Ray ◽  
D. Nawaz ◽  
R. A. Majack ◽  
L. D. Horwitz

Local release of mitogenic and chemotactic signals during angioplasty-induced vascular injury may initiate restenosis. We investigated whether mechanical injury to vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMC) results in the release of biologically active peptide growth factors. Monolayers of bovine SMC cultures were mechanically injured by cell scraping. Conditioned medium (CM) from control and injured SMC cultures was collected, and the mitogenic activity was measured by [3H]thymidine incorporation in recipient SMC cultures. Mitogenic activity from injured CM was detected within 15 min after injury. When the CM from injured cells was removed 15 min after injury and replaced with serum-free media, there was no detectable mitogenic activity in the replacement CM assessed 1-6 days postinjury. Suramin, a nonspecific peptide growth factor antagonist, significantly inhibited the mitogenic activity of injured CM. Basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF), platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF A chain), and epidermal growth factor (EGF) were detected in CM from injured cells by immunoblot analysis. The mitogenic activity of injured CM was significantly inhibited with neutralizing antibodies to bFGF (34%), PDGF-AA (32%), PDGF-BB (25%), and EGF (25%). A neutralizing antibody to transforming growth factor (TGF)-beta had no effect. In conclusion, bFGF, PDGF, and EGF are immediately released from mechanically injured VSMC. VSMC likely contain preformed, biologically active growth factors that are efficiently released from the cell cytoplasm following mechanical injury. Conditioned medium from injured VSMC is highly mitogenic, and this activity is probably due to multiple growth factors interacting synergistically.

2002 ◽  
Vol 3 (2) ◽  
pp. 131-144 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hitomi Yamada ◽  
Toshio Tsushima ◽  
Hitomi Murakami ◽  
Yasuko Uchigata ◽  
Yasuhiko Iwamoto

Hyperinsulinemia has been shown to be associated with diabetic angiopathy. Migration and proliferation of vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMC) are the processes required for the development of atherosclerosis. In this study, we attempted to determine whether insulin affects mitogenic signaling induced by plateletderived growth factor (PDGF) in a rat VSMC cell line (A10 cells). PDGF stimulated DNA synthesis which was totally dependent on Ras, because transfection of dominant negative Ras resulted in complete loss of PDGF-stimulated DNA synthesis. Initiation of DNA synthesis was preceded by activation of Raf-1, MEK and MAP kinases (Erk 1 and Erk2). Treatment of the cells with PD98059, an inhibitor of MAPK kinase (MEK) attenuated but did not abolish PDGF-stimulated DNA synthesis, suggesting that MAPK is required but not essential for DNA synthesis. PDGF also stimulated phosphorylation of protein kinase B (Akt/PKB) and p70 S6Kinase (p70S6K) in a wortmannin-sensitive manner. Rapamycin, an inhibitor of p70S6K, markedly suppressed DNA synthesis. Low concentrations of insulin (1-10 nmol/l) alone showed little mitogenic activity and no significant effect on MAPK activity. However, the presence of insulin enhanced both DNA synthesis and MAPK activation by PDGF. The enhancing effect of insulin was not seen in cells treated with PD98059. Insulin was without effect on PDGF-stimulated activations of protein kinase B (Akt/PKB) and p70S6K. We conclude that insulin, at pathophysiologically relevant concentrations, potentiates the PDGFstimulated DNA synthesis, at least in part, by potentiating activation of the MAPK cascade. These results are consistent with the notion that hyperinsulinemia is a risk factor for the development of atherosclerosis.


1996 ◽  
Vol 16 (5) ◽  
pp. 2264-2273 ◽  
Author(s):  
T Inaba ◽  
T Gotoda ◽  
S Ishibashi ◽  
K Harada ◽  
J I Ohsuga ◽  
...  

The macrophage colony-stimulating factor receptor encoded by the c-fms gene is expressed in vascular intimal smooth muscle cells isolated from atherosclerotic lesions. A combination of platelet-derived growth factor-BB and epidermal growth factor induces stable expression of c-fms in normal vascular medial smooth muscle cells. The mechanism by which these growth factors induce c-fms expression has now been investigated in an attempt to gain insight into the events that underlie the phenotypic conversion of vascular smooth muscle cells in atherosclerosis. Deletion analysis of the c-fms promoter revealed that the region including a binding site for transcription factor PU.1 was required for transcriptional activity in human aortic medial smooth muscle cells. Mutation in the PU.1 binding site markedly reduced promoter activity. Northern (RNA) blot analysis demonstrated that growth factors induced the expression of PU.1 mRNA in vascular medial smooth muscle cells and that PU.1 mRNA was expressed in vascular intimal smooth muscle cells. PU.1 antisense oligonucleotides inhibited growth factor-induced c-fms expression and foam cell formation. These results suggest that transcription factor PU.1 plays an essential role in the phenotypic conversion of vascular smooth muscle cells to macrophagelike cells by mediating the induction of c-fms.


1985 ◽  
Vol 53 (02) ◽  
pp. 165-169 ◽  
Author(s):  
Walter E Laug

SummaryTPure cultures of bovine endothelial cells (EC) produce and secrete large amounts of plasminogen activators (PA). Cocultivation of EC with vascular smooth muscle cells (SMC) resulted in a significant decrease of PA activities secreted by the EC, whereas the cellular PA activities remained unaffected. Secreted PA activities were absent in the growth medium as long as the SMC to EC ratio was 2:1 or higher. The PA inhibitory activity of the SMC was rapid and cell-to-cell contact was not necessary.The PA inhibitory activity was present in homogenates of SMC as well as in the medium conditioned by them but not in the extracellular matrix elaborated by these cells. Serum free medium conditioned by SMC neutralized both tissue type (t-PA) and urokinase like (u-PA) plasminogen activators. Gel electrophoretic analysis of SMC conditioned medium followed by reverse fibrin autography demonstrated PA inhibitory activities in the molecular weight (Mr) range of 50,000 to 52,000 similar to those present in media conditioned by bovine endothelial cells or fibroblasts. Regular fibrin zymography of SMC conditioned medium incubated with u-PA or t-PA revealed the presence of a component with a calculated approximate Mr of 45,000 to 50,000 which formed SDS resistant complexes with both types of PA.These data demonstrate that vascular SMC produce and secrete (a) inhibitor(s) of PAs which may influence the fibrinolytic potential of EC.


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