Gestational hypertension and the developmental origins of cardiac hypertrophy and diastolic dysfunction

The developmental origins of health and disease refer to the theory that adverse maternal environments influence fetal development and the risk of cardiovascular disease in adulthood. We used the chronically hypertensive atrial natriuretic peptide knockout (ANP?/?) mouse as a model of gestational hypertension, and attempted to determine the effect of gestational hypertension on left ventricular (LV) structure and function in adult offspring. We crossed normotensive ANP+/+ females with ANP?/? males (yielding ANP+/?^WT offspring) and hypertensive ANP?/? females with ANP+/+ males (yielding ANP+/?^KO offspring). Cardiac gene expression was measured using real-time quantitative PCR. Cardiac function was assessed using echocardiography. Daily injections of isoproterenol (ISO) were used to induce cardiac stress. Collagen deposition was assessed using picrosirius red staining. All mice were 10 weeks of age. Gestational hypertension resulted in significant LV hypertrophy in offspring, with no change in LV function. Treatment with ISO resulted in significant LV diastolic dysfunction with a restrictive filling pattern (increased E/A ratio and E/e′) and interstitial myocardial fibrosis only in ANP+/?^KO and not ANP+/?^WT offspring. Gestational hypertension programs adverse LV structural and functional remodeling in offspring. These data suggest that adverse maternal environments may increase the risk of heart failure in offspring later in life.     

Sar1Ile7]angiotensin III, a new selective antagonist of the pressor effect of angiotensin III in conscious rats

Two analogues of angiotensin III were compared as antagonists of the pressor response to angiotensin II (ANG II) and angiotensin III (ANG III) in conscious, unrestrained rats. Dose-mean arterial pressure (MAP) response curves were obtained for ANG II and ANG III in the absence or presence of [Ile7]ANG III (1.3 x 10(-7) mol/kg) or [Sar1 Ile7]ANG III (1.2 x 10(-7) mol/kg). In the presence of [Ile7]ANG III, the dose-MAP response curves for ANG II and ANG III were significantly displaced to the right. [Ile7]ANG III behaved as a partial agonist on ANG II but not ANG III receptors. In the presence of [Sar1 Ile7]ANG III, the dose-MAP response curve for ANG III but not ANG II was significantly displaced to the right. This suggests that [Sar1 Ile7]ANG III is a selective antagonist of ANG III in the vasculature. [Ile7]ANG III, on the other hand, antagonizes both ANG II and ANG III receptors. Our results support the hypothesis of the existence of a sub-class of angiotensin receptors activated by ANG III in the vascular smooth muscle.     

Kruppel-like factor 1 (KLF1), KLF2, and Myc control a regulatory network essential for embryonic erythropoiesis

The Krüppel-like factor 1 (KLF1) and KLF2 positively regulate embryonic β-globin expression and have additional overlapping roles in embryonic (primitive) erythropoiesis. KLF1(-/-) KLF2(-/-) double knockout mice are anemic at embryonic day 10.5 (E10.5) and die by E11.5, in contrast to single knockouts. To investigate the combined roles of KLF1 and KLF2 in primitive erythropoiesis, expression profiling of E9.5 erythroid cells was performed. A limited number of genes had a significantly decreasing trend of expression in wild-type, KLF1(-/-), and KLF1(-/-) KLF2(-/-) mice. Among these, the gene for Myc (c-Myc) emerged as a central node in the most significant gene network. The expression of the Myc gene is synergistically regulated by KLF1 and KLF2, and both factors bind the Myc promoters. To characterize the role of Myc in primitive erythropoiesis, ablation was performed specifically in mouse embryonic proerythroblast cells. After E9.5, these embryos exhibit an arrest in the normal expansion of circulating red cells and develop anemia, analogous to KLF1(-/-) KLF2(-/-) embryos. In the absence of Myc, circulating erythroid cells do not show the normal increase in α- and β-like globin gene expression but, interestingly, have accelerated erythroid cell maturation between E9.5 and E11.5. This study reveals a novel regulatory network by which KLF1 and KLF2 regulate Myc to control the primitive erythropoietic program.     

Pyrazole inhibitors of coactivator associated arginine methyltransferase 1 (CARM1)

This study reports the identification and Hits to Leads optimization of inhibitors of coactivator associated arginine methyltransferase (CARM1). Compound 7b is a potent, selective inhibitor of CARM1.     

Extreme mitochondrial evolution in the ctenophore Mnemiopsis leidyi: Insight from mtDNA and the nuclear genome

Recent advances in sequencing technology have led to a rapid accumulation of mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) sequences, which now represent the wide spectrum of animal diversity. However, one animal phylum--Ctenophora--has, to date, remained completely unsampled. Ctenophores, a small group of marine animals, are of interest due to their unusual biology, controversial phylogenetic position, and devastating impact as invasive species. Using data from the Mnemiopsis leidyi genome sequencing project, we Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) amplified and analyzed its complete mitochondrial (mt-) genome. At just over 10 kb, the mt-genome of M. leidyi is the smallest animal mtDNA ever reported and is among the most derived. It has lost at least 25 genes, including atp6 and all tRNA genes. We show that atp6 has been relocated to the nuclear genome and has acquired introns and a mitochondrial targeting presequence, while tRNA genes have been genuinely lost, along with nuclear-encoded mt-aminoacyl tRNA synthetases. The mt-genome of M. leidyi also displays extremely high rates of sequence evolution, which likely led to the degeneration of both protein and rRNA genes. In particular, encoded rRNA molecules possess little similarity with their homologs in other organisms and have highly reduced secondary structures. At the same time, nuclear encoded mt-ribosomal proteins have undergone expansions, likely to compensate for the reductions in mt-rRNA. The unusual features identified in M. leidyi mtDNA make this organism an interesting system for the study of various aspects of mitochondrial biology, particularly protein and tRNA import and mt-ribosome structures, and add to its value as an emerging model species. Furthermore, the fast-evolving M. leidyi mtDNA should be a convenient molecular marker for species- and population-level studies.     

Loss of Heterozygosity Drives Clonal Diversity of Phytophthora capsici in China

Phytophthora capsici causes significant loss to pepper (Capsicum annum) in China and our goal was to develop single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) markers for P. capsici and characterize genetic diversity nationwide. Eighteen isolates of P. capsici from locations worldwide were re-sequenced and candidate nuclear and mitochondrial SNPs identified. From 2006 to 2012, 276 isolates of P. capsici were recovered from 136 locations in 27 provinces and genotyped using 45 nuclear and 2 mitochondrial SNPs. There were two main mitochondrial haplotypes and 95 multi-locus genotypes (MLGs) identified. Genetic diversity was geographically structured with a high level of genotypic diversity in the north and on Hainan Island in the south, suggesting outcrossing contributes to diversity in these areas. The remaining areas of China are dominated by four clonal lineages that share mitochondrial haplotypes, are almost exclusively the A1 or A2 mating type and appear to exhibit extensive diversity based on loss of heterozygosity (LOH). Analysis of SNPs directly from infected peppers confirmed LOH in field populations. One clonal lineage is dominant throughout much of the country. The overall implications for long-lived genetically diverse clonal lineages amidst a widely dispersed sexual population are discussed.     

Modulation of airway inflammation and bacterial clearance by epithelial cell ICAM-1

Many cell types in the airway express the adhesive glycoprotein for leukocytes intercellular adhesion molecule-1 (ICAM-1) constitutively and/or in response to inflammatory stimuli. In this study, we identified functions of ICAM-1 on airway epithelial cells in defense against infection with Haemophilus influenzae. Initial experiments using a mouse model of airway infection in which the bacterial inoculum was mixed with agar beads that localize inflammation in airways demonstrated that ICAM-1 expression was required for efficient clearance of H. influenzae. Airway epithelial cell ICAM-1 expression required few or no leukocytes, suggesting that epithelial cells could be activated directly by interaction with bacteria. Specific inhibition of ICAM-1 function on epithelial cells by orotracheal injection of blocking antibodies resulted in decreased leukocyte recruitment and H. influenzae clearance in the airway. Inhibition of endothelial cell ICAM-1 resulted in a similar decrease in leukocyte recruitment but did not affect bacterial clearance, indicating that epithelial cell ICAM-1 had an additional contribution to airway defense independent of effects on leukocyte migration. To assess this possibility, we used an in vitro model of neutrophil phagocytosis of bacteria and observed significantly greater engulfment of bacteria by neutrophils adherent to epithelial cells expressing ICAM-1 compared with nonadherent neutrophils. Furthermore, bacterial phagocytosis and killing by neutrophils after interaction with epithelial cells were decreased when a blocking antibody inhibited ICAM-1 function. The results indicate that epithelial cell ICAM-1 participates in neutrophil recruitment into the airway, but its most important role in clearance of H. influenzae may be assistance with neutrophil-dependent bacterial killing.