Human thymic stromal lymphopoietin preferentially stimulates myeloid cells.

The sequence of a novel hemopoietic cytokine was discovered in a computational screen of genomic databases, and its homology to mouse thymic stromal lymphopoietin (TSLP) suggests that it is the human orthologue. Human TSLP is proposed to signal through a heterodimeric receptor complex that consists of a new member of the hemopoietin family termed human TSLP receptor and the IL-7R alpha-chain. Cells transfected with both receptor subunits proliferated in response to purified, recombinant human TSLP, with induced phosphorylation of Stat3 and Stat5. Human TSLPR and IL-7Ralpha are principally coexpressed on monocytes and dendritic cell populations and to a much lesser extent on various lymphoid cells. In accord, we find that human TSLP functions mainly on myeloid cells; it induces the release of T cell-attracting chemokines from monocytes and, in particular, enhances the maturation of CD11c(+) dendritic cells, as evidenced by the strong induction of the costimulatory molecules CD40 and CD80 and the enhanced capacity to elicit proliferation of naive T cells.     

Role of myeloid cells in tumor angiogenesis and growth

Cells of the innate immune system have a key role in maintaining homeostasis by providing the first line of defense against many pathogens. Innate immunity can also modulate the activity of acquired immunity by several mechanisms. However, subsets of myeloid cells can facilitate tumor growth, because these cells produce angiogenic factors and can also prevent the immune system from attacking tumor cells. Recent studies also emphasize the role of myeloid cells in mediating refractoriness to anti-VEGF treatments. This function of myeloid cells occurs through a proangiogenic pathway that is, at least in part, driven by the secreted protein Bv8. This review summarizes recent findings on the complex role of bone marrow-derived cells in tumor growth.     

髓样细胞在肿瘤血管生成过程中的作用

肿瘤血管生成在肿瘤的发展过程中起着关键作用。外周循环血中存在的一些髓样细胞,如巨噬细胞、中性粒细胞、酸性粒细胞、肥大细胞和树突状细胞等具有多方面的能力,被募集到肿瘤组织中,在肿瘤微环境中促进肿瘤的血管生成。这些髓样细胞在肿瘤血管生成过程中起重要的作用。该文对这些不同类型细胞促进肿瘤血管生成的作用进行了论述。     

Ghrelin stimulates angiogenesis in human microvascular endothelial cells: Implications beyond GH release

Ghrelin, a peptide hormone isolated from the stomach, releases growth hormone and stimulates appetite. Ghrelin is also expressed in pancreas, kidneys, cardiovascular system and in endothelial cells. The precise role of ghrelin in endothelial cell functions remains unknown. We examined the expression of ghrelin and its receptor (GHSR1) mRNAs and proteins in human microvascular endothelial cells (HMVEC) and determined whether ghrelin affects in these cells proliferation, migration and in vitro angiogenesis; and whether MAPK/ERK2 signaling is important for the latter action. We found that ghrelin and GHSR1 are constitutively expressed in HMVEC. Treatment of HMVEC with exogenous ghrelin significantly increased in these cells proliferation, migration, in vitro angiogenesis and ERK2 phosphorylation. MEK/ERK2 inhibitor, PD 98059 abolished ghrelin-induced in vitro angiogenesis. This is the first demonstration that ghrelin and its receptor are expressed in human microvascular endothelial cells and that ghrelin stimulates HMVEC proliferation, migration, and angiogenesis through activation of ERK2 signaling.     

Hypoxia stimulates pancreatic stellate cells to induce fibrosis and angiogenesis in pancreatic cancer

Pancreatic cancer is characterized by excessive desmoplastic reaction and by a hypoxic microenvironment within the solid tumor mass. Chronic pancreatitis is also characterized by fibrosis and hypoxia. Fibroblasts in the area of fibrosis in these pathological settings are now recognized as activated pancreatic stellate cells (PSCs). Recent studies have suggested that a hypoxic environment concomitantly exists not only in pancreatic cancer cells but also in surrounding PSCs. This study aimed to clarify whether hypoxia affected the cell functions in PSCs. Human PSCs were isolated and cultured under normoxia (21% O(2)) or hypoxia (1% O(2)). We examined the effects of hypoxia and conditioned media of hypoxia-treated PSCs on cell functions in PSCs and in human umbilical vein endothelial cells. Hypoxia induced migration, type I collagen expression, and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) production in PSCs. Conditioned media of hypoxia-treated PSCs induced migration of PSCs, which was inhibited by anti-VEGF antibody but not by antibody against hepatocyte growth factor. Conditioned media of hypoxia-treated PSCs induced endothelial cell proliferation, migration, and angiogenesis in vitro and in vivo. PSCs expressed several angiogenesis-regulating molecules including VEGF receptors, angiopoietin-1, and Tie-2. In conclusion, hypoxia induced profibrogenic and proangiogenic responses in PSCs. In addition to their established profibrogenic roles, PSCs might play proangiogenic roles during the development of pancreatic fibrosis, where they are subjected to hypoxia.     

AGEs通过SDF-1/CXCR4轴信号通路对心肌微血管内皮细胞血管新生的影响及机制

目的:探讨AGEs通过刺激SDF-1/CXCR4轴信号系统对心肌微血管内皮细胞的增值、迁移、管样结果形成的影响以及AMD3100对其的干预作用.方法:用不同浓度的AMD3100作用于浓度为200mg/L的AGEs共孵育的CMECs24h,用MTT法检测细胞活力及增殖能力,并选择合适的干扰浓度(抑制效果居中).随机选取加入AGEs200ml/L的CMECs,加入合适浓度的AMD3100,分别作用24、48、72h,采用MTT法测定AGEs处理前后细胞增值率的变化,并检测AMD3100对增值率的影响;毛细血管管腔样结构形成实验检测对CMECs血管新生的影响和AMD3100对其阻断作用的影响.结果:心肌微血管内皮细胞增殖能力和迁移能力在24h、48h、72h有显著增强;并促进了心肌微血管内皮细胞管样形成(vs P＜0.05);CXCR4受体阻断剂AMD3100作用于细胞后,可以显著阻断AGEs对心肌微血管内皮细胞增殖能力和迁移能力和管腔形成(vs P＜0.05)的影响.结论:AGEs在早期显著增强了心肌微血管内皮细胞的增殖、迁移和管样结构形成的能力,其作用机制可能与SDF-1/CXCR4轴信号通路有关.     

Leukotriene C4 stimulates angiogenesis in bovine carotid artery endothelial cells in vitro

In order to investigate the mechanism of angiogenesis involved in inflammatory processes, the effects of leukotrienes and prostaglandin E2 on in vitro tube formation of cultured vascular endothelial cells were examined. Endothelial cells from bovine carotid artery were cultured for 4 days between two layers of collagen gel and the lengths of organized tubes were quantitatively estimated with an image analyzer. Treatment with 10(-8)-10(-6)M of prostaglandin E2 increased the tubular lengths, and leukotriene C4 stimulated tube formation at far lower concentrations (10(-15)-10(-9)M) but leukotriene B4 and D4 were not effective on the tube formation. It was also found that endothelial cell migration was stimulated by almost the same concentrations of leukotriene C4 as those stimulating tube formation. These data suggest that leukotriene C4 is, at least, one of the important factors involved in angiogenesis during inflammatory processes.     

Matrix protein mutant of vesicular stomatitis virus stimulates maturation of myeloid dendritic cells

Matrix (M) protein mutants of vesicular stomatitis virus have recently been used as oncolytic viruses for tumor therapies and are being developed as vaccine vectors for heterologous antigens. Because dendritic cell (DC) maturation is an important correlate of tumor immunosurveillance and vaccine efficacy, we sought to determine the ability of a recombinant M protein mutant virus (rM51R-M virus) to mature DC in vitro. We have previously shown that rM51R-M virus is defective at inhibiting host gene expression in several cell lines compared to its recombinant wild-type counterpart, rwt virus. Therefore, rM51R-M virus allows the expression of genes involved in antiviral responses, such as the type I interferon (IFN) gene. Our results demonstrate that, in contrast to the rwt virus, rM51R-M virus induced the maturation of myeloid DC (mDC) populations, as indicated by an increase in the surface expression of CD40, CD80, and CD86 as well as the secretion of interleukin-12 (IL-12), IL-6, and type I IFN. In addition, mDC infected with rM51R-M virus effectively activated na?ve T cells in vitro, whereas rwt virus-infected mDC were defective in antigen presentation. The inability of rwt virus to induce mDC maturation was correlated with the inhibition of host gene expression in rwt virus-infected cells. Our studies also indicated that the production of costimulatory molecules on mDC by rM51R-M virus was dependent on the type I IFN receptor, while maturation induced by this virus was largely independent of MyD88. These data indicate that rM51R-M virus effectively stimulates the maturation of mDC and has the potential to promote effective T-cell responses to vector-expressed antigens, activate DC at tumor sites during therapy, and aid in tumor immunosurveillance and destruction.     

SDF-1 activates papillary label-retaining cells during kidney repair from injury

The adult kidney contains a population of low-cycling cells that resides in the papilla. These cells retain for long periods S-phase markers given as a short pulse early in life; i.e., they are label-retaining cells (LRC). In previous studies in adult rat and mice, we found that shortly after acute kidney injury many of the quiescent papillary LRC started proliferating (Oliver JA, Klinakis A, Cheema FH, Friedlander J, Sampogna RV, Martens TP, Liu C, Efstratiadis A, Al-Awqati Q. J Am Soc Nephrol 20: 2315-2327, 2009; Oliver JA, Maarouf O, Cheema FH, Martens TP, Al-Awqati Q. J Clin Invest 114: 795-804, 2004) and, with cell-tracking experiments, we found upward migration of some papillary cells including LRC (Oliver JA, Klinakis A, Cheema FH, Friedlander J, Sampogna RV, Martens TP, Liu C, Efstratiadis A, Al-Awqati Q. J Am Soc Nephrol 20: 2315-2327, 2009). To identify molecular cues involved in the activation (i.e., proliferation and/or migration) of the papillary LRC that follows injury, we isolated these cells from the H2B-GFP mice and found that they migrated and proliferated in response to the cytokine stromal cell-derived factor-1 (SDF-1). Moreover, in a papillary organ culture assay, the cell growth out of the upper papilla was dependent on the interaction of SDF-1 with its receptor Cxcr4. Interestingly, location of these two proteins in the kidney revealed a complementary location, with SDF-1 being preferentially expressed in the medulla and Cxcr4 more abundant in the papilla. Blockade of Cxcr4 in vivo prevented mobilization of papillary LRC after transient kidney ischemic injury and worsened its functional consequences. The data indicate that the SDF-1/Cxcr4 axis is a critical regulator of papillary LRC activation following transient kidney injury and during organ repair.     

Hypoxia stimulates the production of the angiogenesis inhibitor 2-methoxyestradiol by swine granulosa cells

We previously demonstrated the presence of 2-methoxyestradiol (2-ME) in swine follicular fluid. Present study was aimed first of all to investigate if swine granulosa cell produce 2-ME; in addition, we tried to assess a potential effect of hypoxia in modulating 2-ME output. Finally, we explored the effect of 2-ME in an angiogenesis bioassay set up in our lab. Our data show that cultured granulosa cells are able to produce 2-ME; interestingly, the secretion of the hormone appeared to be stimulated by hypoxia. Angiogenesis bioassay points out that 2-ME displays an inhibitory effect on neovascularisation. Therefore our data suggest that 2-ME could be a local effector in determining the fine tuning responsible for follicle angiogenesis. These data deserve special attention since the ovary is a valuable experimental model in angiogenesis research.     

N-acetyl-seryl-aspartyl-lysyl-proline stimulates angiogenesis in vitro and in vivo

N-acetyl-seryl-aspartyl-lysyl-proline (Ac-SDKP), a natural inhibitor of pluripotent hematopoietic stem cell proliferation, has been suggested as capable of promoting an angiogenic response. We studied whether Ac-SDKP stimulates endothelial cell proliferation, migration, and tube formation; enhances angiogenic response in the rat cornea after implantation of a tumor spheroid; and increases capillary density in rat hearts with myocardial infarction (MI). In vitro, an immortal BALB/c mouse aortic endothelial 22106 cell line was used to determine the effects of Ac-SDKP on endothelial cell proliferation and migration and tube formation. In vivo, a 9L-gliosarcoma cell spheroid (250-300 microm in diameter) was implanted in the rat cornea and vehicle or Ac-SDKP (800 microg.kg(-1).day(-1) ip) infused via osmotic minipump. Myocardial capillary density was studied in rats with MI given either vehicle or Ac-SDKP. We found that Ac-SDKP 1) stimulated endothelial cell proliferation and migration and tube formation in a dose-dependent manner, 2) enhanced corneal neovascularization, and 3) increased myocardial capillary density. Endothelial cell proliferation and angiogenesis stimulated by Ac-SDKP could be beneficial in cardiovascular diseases such as hypertension and MI. Furthermore, because Ac-SDKP is mainly cleaved by ACE, it may partially mediate the cardioprotective effect of ACE inhibitors.     

Carboxyamidotriazole-orotate inhibits the growth of imatinib-resistant chronic myeloid leukaemia cells and modulates exosomes-stimulated angiogenesis

The Bcr/Abl kinase has been targeted for the treatment of chronic myelogenous leukaemia (CML) by imatinib mesylate. While imatinib has been extremely effective for chronic phase CML, blast crisis CML are often resistant. New therapeutic options are therefore needed for this fatal disease. Although more common in solid tumors, increased microvessel density was also reported in chronic myelogenous leukaemia and was associated with a significant increase of angiogenic factors, suggesting that vascularity in hematologic malignancies is a controlled process and may play a role in the leukaemogenic process thus representing an alternative therapeutic target. Carboxyamidotriazole-orotate (CTO) is the orotate salt form of carboxyamidotriazole (CAI), an orally bioavailable signal transduction inhibitor that in vitro has been shown to possess antileukaemic activities. CTO, which has a reduced toxicity, increased oral bioavailability and stronger efficacy when compared to the parental compound, was tested in this study for its ability to affect imatinib-resistant CML tumor growth in a xenograft model. The active cross talk between endothelial cells and leukemic cells in the bone marrow involving exosomes plays an important role in modulating the process of neovascularization in CML. We have thus investigated the effects of CTO on exosome-stimulated angiogenesis. Our results indicate that CTO may be effective in targeting both cancer cell growth and the tumor microenvironment, thus suggesting a potential therapeutic utility for CTO in leukaemia patients.     

OxLDL stimulates Id1 nucleocytoplasmic shuttling in endothelial cell angiogenesis via PI3K pathway

Angiogenesis plays remarkable roles in the development of atherosclerotic rupture plaques. However, its essential mechanism remains unclear. The purpose of the study was to investigate whether inhibitor of DNA binding-1 or inhibitor of differentiation 1 (Id1) promoted angiogenesis when exposed to oxidised low-density lipoprotein (oxLDL), and to determine the molecular mechanism involved. Using aortic ring assay and tube formation assay as a model system, a low concentration of oxLDL was found to induce angiogenic sprouting and capillary lumen formation of endothelial cell. But the Id1 expression was significantly upregulated by oxLDL at low and high concentrations. The Id1 was localised in the nuclei of the human umbilical vein endothelial cells in the control group and in the high-concentration oxLDL group. Id1 was translocated to the cytoplasm at low oxLDL concentrations. The nucleocytoplasmic shuttling at low oxLDL concentration was inhibited by treatment with the nuclear export inhibitor leptomycin B. Protein kinase A (PKA) inhibitor H89 promoted nuclear export of Id1, and phosphatidylinositol-3-kinase (PI3K) inhibitor LY294002 reduced the nuclear export of Id1. PI3K inhibition blocked oxLDL-induced angiogenesis. Low concentrations of oxLDL promoted angiogenic sprouting and capillary formation. And this process depends on nuclear export of Id1, which in turn is controlled by the PI3K pathway. This report presents a new link between oxLDL and Id1 localisation, and may provide a new insight into the interactions of ox-LDL and Id1 in the context of atherosclerosis.     

Reprogramming of myeloid angiogenic cells by Bartonella henselae leads to microenvironmental regulation of pathological angiogenesis

The contribution of myeloid cells to tumour microenvironments is a decisive factor in cancer progression. Tumour‐associated macrophages (TAMs) mediate tumour invasion and angiogenesis through matrix remodelling, immune modulation and release of pro‐angiogenic cytokines. Nothing is known about how pathogenic bacteria affect myeloid cells in these processes. Here we show that Bartonella henselae, a bacterial pathogen causing vasculoproliferative diseases (bacillary angiomatosis), reprogrammes human myeloid angiogenic cells (MACs), a pro‐angiogenic subset of circulating progenitor cells, towards a TAM‐like phenotype with increased pro‐angiogenic capacity. B. henselae infection resulted in inhibition of cell death, activation of angiogenic cellular programmes and induction of M2 macrophage polarization. MACs infected with B. henselae incorporated into endothelial sprouts and increased angiogenic growth. Infected MACs developed a vascular mimicry phenotype in vitro, and expression of B. henselae adhesin A was essential in inducing these angiogenic effects. Secretome analysis revealed that increased pro‐angiogenic activities were associated with the creation of a tumour‐like microenvironment dominated by angiogenic inflammatory cytokines and matrix remodelling compounds. Our results demonstrate that manipulation of myeloid cells by pathogenic bacteria can contribute to microenvironmental regulation of pathological tissue growth and suggest parallels underlying both bacterial infections and cancer.     

Adiponectin stimulates angiogenesis by promoting cross-talk between AMP-activated protein kinase and Akt signaling in endothelial cells

Adiponectin is an adipocyte-specific adipocytokine with anti-atherogenic and anti-diabetic properties. Here, we investigated whether adiponectin regulates angiogenic processes in vitro and in vivo. Adiponectin stimulated the differentiation of human umbilical vein endothelium cells (HUVECs) into capillary-like structures in vitro and functioned as a chemoattractant in migration assays. Adiponectin promoted the phosphorylation of AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK), protein kinase Akt/protein kinase B, and endothelial nitric oxide synthesis (eNOS) in HUVECs. Transduction with either dominant-negative AMPK or dominant-negative Akt abolished adiponectin-induced eNOS phosphorylation as well as adiponectin-stimulated HUVEC migration and differentiation. Dominant-negative AMPK also inhibited adiponectin-induced Akt phosphorylation, suggesting that AMPK is upstream of Akt. Dominant-negative Akt or the phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase inhibitor LY294002 blocked adiponectin-stimulated Akt and eNOS phosphorylation, migration, and differentiation without altering AMPK phosphorylation. Finally, adiponectin stimulated blood vessel growth in vivo in mouse Matrigel plug implantation and rabbit corneal models of angiogenesis. These data indicate that adiponectin can function to stimulate the new blood vessel growth by promoting cross-talk between AMP-activated protein kinase and Akt signaling within endothelial cells.     

IL-1 stimulates IL-6 production in endothelial cells

Leukocytes and vascular cells interact closely in inflammation and immunity and lymphokines are important mediators of this interaction. The present study was designed to define the possible role of IL-6 as a communication signal between vascular and immunocompetent cells. IL-6 was measured as hybridoma growth factor (HGF) on the 7TD1 cell line in the supernatants of human endothelial cells (HEC). HEC released appreciable levels of HGF activity in the absence of deliberate stimulation. In vitro exposure to recombinant IL-1 beta markedly increased (usually 10 to 15-fold) HGF production by HEC. Optimal stimulation was observed with 0.1 to 50 U/ml for 4 to 20 h of incubation. Human and murine rIL-1 alpha stimulated HGF production in HEC. Anti-IL-6 antibodies inhibited the HGF activity of the HEC supernatants, thus confirming, together with the cytokine specificity of the assay, the nature of HEC-produced cytokine. IL-1-treated HEC expressed high levels of IL-6 mRNA as detected by Northern blot analysis. Inasmuch as IL-1 elicits a complex series of changes in HEC, it was important to assess whether IL-6, produced after exposure to IL-1, modified HEC function. Natural or rIL-6 did not affect the functional status of HEC as assessed by proliferative capacity, production of procoagulant activity and prostacyclin, ability to induce adhesion of polymorphonuclear leukocytes. The capacity to produce IL-6 may represent an important mechanism by which endothelial cells participate in inflammatory and immune reactions.     

Bone morphogenetic protein-2 stimulates angiogenesis in developing tumors

Bone Morphogenetic Protein-2 (BMP-2) is highly overexpressed in the majority of patient-derived lung carcinomas. However, a mechanism revealing its role in cancer has not been established. Here we report that BMP-2 enhances the neovascularization of developing tumors. Recombinant BMP-2 stimulated blood vessel formation in tumors formed from A549 cells injected s.c. into thymic nude mice. Recombinant BMP-2 also enhanced angiogenesis in Matrigel plugs containing A549 cells in nude mice. The BMP-2 antagonist noggin abrogated BMP-2-induced angiogenic response. Furthermore, antisense transfection of BMP-2 cDNA resulted in a decrease in blood vessel formation in the Matrigel assays. BMP-2 induced tube formation in both human aortic endothelial cells (HAEC) and umbilical vein endothelial cells. BMP-2 also stimulated proliferation of HAEC. The ability of BMP-2 to activate endothelial cells was further demonstrated by its ability to phosphorylate Smad 1/5/8 and ERK-1/2 and to increase expression of Id1. This study reveals that BMP-2 enhanced the angiogenic response in developing tumors. Furthermore, these data suggest that BMP-2 stimulation of angiogenesis may involve the activation of endothelial cells.