Cholesterol trafficking, lysosomal function, and atherosclerosis.

Despite years of study and major research advances over the past 50 years, atherosclerotic diseases continue to rank as the leading global cause of death. Accumulation of cholesterol within the vascular wall remains the main problem and represents one of the early steps in the development of atherosclerotic lesions. There is a complex relationship between vesicular cholesterol transport and atherosclerosis, and abnormalities in cholesterol trafficking can contribute to the development and progression of the lesions. The dysregulation of vesicular cholesterol transport and lysosomal function fosters the buildup of cholesterol within various intracytoplasmic compartments, including lysosomes and lipid droplets. This, in turn, promotes the hallmark formation of foam cells, a defining feature of early atherosclerosis. Multiple cellular processes, encompassing endocytosis, exocytosis, intracellular trafficking, and autophagy, play crucial roles in influencing foam cell formation and atherosclerotic plaque stability. In this review, we highlight recent advances in the understanding of the intricate mechanisms of vesicular cholesterol transport and its relationship with atherosclerosis and discuss the importance of understanding these mechanisms in developing strategies to prevent or treat this prevalent cardiovascular disease.

Wnt5a Promotes Lysosomal Cholesterol Egress and Protects Against Atherosclerosis.

BACKGROUND: Impairment of cellular cholesterol trafficking is at the heart of atherosclerotic lesions formation. This involves egress of cholesterol from the lysosomes and 2 lysosomal proteins, the NPC1 (Niemann-Pick C1) and NPC2 that promotes cholesterol trafficking. However, movement of cholesterol out the lysosome and how disrupted cholesterol trafficking leads to atherosclerosis is unclear. As the Wnt ligand, Wnt5a inhibits the intracellular accumulation of cholesterol in multiple cell types, we tested whether Wnt5a interacts with the lysosomal cholesterol export machinery and studied its role in atherosclerotic lesions formation. METHODS: We generated mice deleted for the Wnt5a gene in vascular smooth muscle cells. To establish whether Wnt5a also protects against cholesterol accumulation in human vascular smooth muscle cells, we used a CRISPR/Cas9 guided nuclease approach to generate human vascular smooth muscle cells knockout for Wnt5a. RESULTS: We show that Wnt5a is a crucial component of the lysosomal cholesterol export machinery. By increasing lysosomal acid lipase expression, decreasing metabolic signaling by the mTORC1 (mechanistic target of rapamycin complex 1) kinase, and through binding to NPC1 and NPC2, Wnt5a senses changes in dietary cholesterol supply and promotes lysosomal cholesterol egress to the endoplasmic reticulum. Consequently, loss of Wnt5a decoupled mTORC1 from variations in lysosomal sterol levels, disrupted lysosomal function, decreased cholesterol content in the endoplasmic reticulum, and promoted atherosclerosis. CONCLUSIONS: These results reveal an unexpected function of the Wnt5a pathway as essential for maintaining cholesterol homeostasis in vivo.

atherosclerosis: gone with the Wnt?

Atherosclerosis, a pathology affecting large and medium-sized arteries, is the major cause of cardiovascular morbidity/mortality in industrialized countries. During atherosclerosis, cells accumulate large amounts of cholesterol through the uptake of modified low-density lipoprotein particles to form foam cells. This accumulation forms the basis for the development of the disease and for a large spectrum of other diseases in various organs. Massive research efforts have yielded valuable information about the underlying molecular mechanisms of atherosclerosis. In particular, newer discoveries on the early stage of lesion formation, cholesterol accumulation, reverse cholesterol transport, and local inflammation in the vascular wall have opened unanticipated horizons of understanding and raised novel questions and therapeutic opportunities. In this review, we focus on Wnt signaling, which has received little attention so far, yet affects lysosomal function and signalling pathways that limit cholesterol accumulation. This occurs in different tissues and cell types, including smooth muscle cells, endothelial cells and macrophages in the arterial wall, and thus profoundly impacts on atherosclerotic disease development and progression.

Resource allocation for biomedical research: analysis of investments by major funders.

BACKGROUND: Data on grants for biomedical research by 10 major funders of health research were collected from the World RePORT platform to explore what is being funded, by whom and where. This analysis is part of the World Health Organization Global Observatory on Health Research and Development's work with the overall aim to enable evidence-informed deliberations and decisions on new investments in health research and development. The analysis expands on the interactive data visualisations of these data on the Observatory's website and describes the methods used to enable the categorisation of grants by health categories using automated data-mining techniques. METHODS: Grants data were extracted from the World RePORT platform for 2016, the most recent year with data from all funders. A data-mining algorithm was developed in Java to categorise grants by health category. The analysis explored the distribution of grants by funder, recipient country and organisation, type of grant, health category, average grant duration, and the nature of collaborations between recipients of direct grants and the institutions they collaborated with. RESULTS: Out of a total of 69,420 grants in 2016, the United States of America's National Institutes of Health funded the greatest number of grants (52,928; 76%) and had the longest average grant duration (6 years and 10 months). Grants for research constituted 70.4% (48,879) of all types of grants, followed by grants for training (13,008; 18.7%) and meetings (2907; 4.2%). Of grant recipients by income group, low-income countries received only 0.2% (165) of all grants. Almost three-quarters of all grants were for non-communicable diseases (72%; 40,035), followed by communicable, maternal, perinatal and nutritional conditions (20%; 11,123), and injuries (6%; 3056). Only 1.1% of grants were for neglected tropical diseases and 0.4% for priority diseases on the WHO list of highly infectious (R&D blueprint) pathogens. CONCLUSIONS: The findings highlight the importance of considering funding decisions by other actors in future health research and capacity-strengthening decisions. This will not only improve efficiency and equity in allocating scarce resources but will also allow informed investment decisions that aim to support research on public health needs and neglected areas.

LRP1 Deficiency in Vascular SMC Leads to Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension That Is Reversed by PPARγ Activation.

RATIONALE: Arterial remodeling-a hallmark of many cardiovascular pathologies including pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH)-is regulated by TGFß1 (transforming growth factor-ß1)-TGFß receptors and the antagonistic, vasoprotective BMPR2 (bone morphogenetic protein receptor 2)-PPARγ (peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-γ) axis. However, it is unclear which factors drive detrimental TGFß1 pathways in the hypertensive pulmonary vasculature. OBJECTIVE: We hypothesized that LRP1 (low-density lipoprotein receptor-related protein 1) expression is decreased in PAH, leading to enhancement (disinhibition) of TGFß1 signals and that the PPARγ agonist pioglitazone can restore vascular homeostasis and prevent PAH resulting from LRP1 deletion in vascular smooth muscle cells (SMCs). METHODS AND RESULTS: Targeted deletion of LRP1 in vascular SMC (smLRP1-/-) in mice disinhibited TGFß1-CTGF (connective tissue growth factor) signaling, leading to spontaneous PAH and distal pulmonary arterial muscularization as assessed by closed-chest cardiac catheterization and anti-αSMA staining. Pioglitazone inhibited the canonical TGFß1-CTGF axis in human pulmonary artery SMC and smLRP1-/- main pulmonary artery (CTGF and NOX4) and reversed PAH in smLRP1-/- mice. TGFß1 boosted pSmad3 in PASMC from smLRP1-/- mice versus controls. Pioglitazone-activated PPARγ binds to Smad3 in human pulmonary artery SMC (coimmunoprecipitation), thereby blocking its phosphorylation and overriding LRP1 deficiency. Finally, mRNA and protein expression of LRP1 was decreased in pulmonary plexiform lesions of patients with end-stage idiopathic PAH (laser capture microdissection, qPCR, and immunohistochemistry). Downregulation of LRP1 protein was also demonstrated in explanted PASMC from patients with PAH and accompanied by enhanced TGFß1-pSmad3-CTGF signaling and increased TGFß1-induced PASMC proliferation that was prevented by pioglitazone. CONCLUSIONS: Here, we identify LRP1 as an integrator of TGFß1-mediated mechanisms that regulate vascular remodeling in mice and clinical PAH and PPARγ as a therapeutic target that controls canonical TGFß1 pathways. Hence, pharmacologic PPARγ activation represents a promising new therapy for patients with PAH who lack the vasoprotective LRP1 in vascular SMC.

Author Correction: Loss of the adaptor protein ShcA in endothelial cells protects against monocyte macrophage adhesion, LDL-oxydation, and atherosclerotic lesion formation.

A correction to this article has been published and is linked from the HTML and PDF versions of this paper. The error has been fixed in the paper.

Loss of the adaptor protein ShcA in endothelial cells protects against monocyte macrophage adhesion, LDL-oxydation, and atherosclerotic lesion formation.

ShcA is an adaptor protein that binds to the cytoplasmic tail of receptor tyrosine kinases and of the Low Density Lipoprotein-related receptor 1 (LRP1), a trans-membrane receptor that protects against atherosclerosis. Here, we examined the role of endothelial ShcA in atherosclerotic lesion formation. We found that atherosclerosis progression was markedly attenuated in mice deleted for ShcA in endothelial cells, that macrophage content was reduced at the sites of lesions, and that adhesion molecules such as the intercellular adhesion molecule-1 (ICAM-1) were severely reduced. Our data indicate that transcriptional regulation of ShcA by the zinc-finger E-box-binding homeobox 1 (ZEB1) and the Hippo pathway effector YAP, promotes ICAM-1 expression independently of p-NF-κB, the primary driver of adhesion molecules expressions. In addition, ShcA suppresses endothelial Akt and nitric oxide synthase (eNOS) expressions. Thus, through down regulation of eNOS and ZEB1-mediated ICAM-1 up regulation, endothelial ShcA promotes monocyte-macrophage adhesion and atherosclerotic lesion formation. Reducing ShcA expression in endothelial cells may represent an obvious therapeutic approach to prevent atherosclerosis.

Developing and implementing national health identifiers in resource limited countries: why, what, who, when and how?

Many resource-limited countries are scaling up health services and health-information systems (HISs). The HIV Cascade framework aims to link treatment services and programs to improve outcomes and impact. It has been adapted to HIV prevention services, other infectious and non-communicable diseases, and programs for specific populations. Where successful, it links the use of health services by individuals across different disease categories, time and space. This allows for the development of longitudinal health records for individuals and de-identified individual level information is used to monitor and evaluate the use, cost, outcome and impact of health services. Contemporary digital technology enables countries to develop and implement integrated HIS to support person centred services, a major aim of the Sustainable Development Goals. The key to link the diverse sources of information together is a national health identifier (NHID). In a country with robust civil protections, this should be given at birth, be unique to the individual, linked to vital registration services and recorded every time that an individual uses health services anywhere in the country: it is more than just a number as it is part of a wider system. Many countries would benefit from practical guidance on developing and implementing NHIDs. Organizations such as ASTM and ISO, describe the technical requirements for the NHID system, but few countries have received little practical guidance. A WHO/UNAIDS stake-holders workshop was held in Geneva, Switzerland in July 2016, to provide a 'road map' for countries and included policy-makers, information and healthcare professionals, and members of civil society. As part of any NHID system, countries need to strengthen and secure the protection of personal health information. While often the technology is available, the solution is not just technical. It requires political will and collaboration among all stakeholders to be successful.

LRP1 integrates murine macrophage cholesterol homeostasis and inflammatory responses in atherosclerosis.

Low-density lipoprotein receptor-related protein 1 (LRP1) is a multifunctional cell surface receptor with diverse physiological roles, ranging from cellular uptake of lipoproteins and other cargo by endocytosis to sensor of the extracellular environment and integrator of a wide range of signaling mechanisms. As a chylomicron remnant receptor, LRP1 controls systemic lipid metabolism in concert with the LDL receptor in the liver, whereas in smooth muscle cells (SMC) LRP1 functions as a co-receptor for TGFß and PDGFRß in reverse cholesterol transport and the maintenance of vascular wall integrity. Here we used a knockin mouse model to uncover a novel atheroprotective role for LRP1 in macrophages where tyrosine phosphorylation of an NPxY motif in its intracellular domain initiates a signaling cascade along an LRP1/SHC1/PI3K/AKT/PPARγ/LXR axis to regulate and integrate cellular cholesterol homeostasis through the expression of the major cholesterol exporter ABCA1 with apoptotic cell removal and inflammatory responses.

Convergent Signaling Pathways Controlled by LRP1 (Receptor-related Protein 1) Cytoplasmic and Extracellular Domains Limit Cellular Cholesterol Accumulation.

The low density lipoprotein receptor-related protein 1 (LRP1) is a ubiquitously expressed cell surface receptor that protects from intracellular cholesterol accumulation. However, the underlying mechanisms are unknown. Here we show that the extracellular (α) chain of LRP1 mediates TGFß-induced enhancement of Wnt5a, which limits intracellular cholesterol accumulation by inhibiting cholesterol biosynthesis and by promoting cholesterol export. Moreover, we demonstrate that the cytoplasmic (ß) chain of LRP1 suffices to limit cholesterol accumulation in LRP1(-/-) cells. Through binding of Erk2 to the second of its carboxyl-terminal NPXY motifs, LRP1 ß-chain positively regulates the expression of ATP binding cassette transporter A1 (ABCA1) and of neutral cholesterol ester hydrolase (NCEH1). These results highlight the unexpected functions of LRP1 and the canonical Wnt5a pathway and new therapeutic potential in cholesterol-associated disorders including cardiovascular diseases.

Postfire Succession of Ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) Nesting in Dead Wood of Northern Boreal Forest.

Dead wood decomposition begins immediately after tree death and involves a large array of invertebrates. Ecological successions are still poorly known for saproxylic organisms, particularly in boreal forests. We investigated the use of dead wood as nesting sites for ants along a 60-yr postfire chronosequence in northeastern coniferous forests. We sampled a total of 1,625 pieces of dead wood, in which 263 ant nests were found. Overall, ant abundance increased during the first 30 yr after wildfire, and then declined. Leptothorax cf. canadensis Provancher, the most abundant species in our study, was absent during the first 2 yr postfire, but increased steadily until 30 yr after fire, whereas Myrmica alaskensis Wheeler, second in abundance, was found at all stages of succession in the chronosequence. Six other species were less frequently found, among which Camponotus herculeanus (Linné), Formica neorufibarbis Emery, and Formica aserva Forel were locally abundant, but more scarcely distributed. Dead wood lying on the ground and showing numerous woodborer holes had a higher probability of being colonized by ants. The C:N ratio was lower for dead wood colonized by ants than for noncolonized dead wood, showing that the continuous occupation of dead wood by ants influences the carbon and nitrogen dynamics of dead wood after wildfire in northern boreal forests.

The Src homology and collagen A (ShcA) adaptor protein is required for the spatial organization of the costamere/Z-disk network during heart development.

Src homology and collagen A (ShcA) is an adaptor protein that binds to tyrosine kinase receptors. Its germ line deletion is embryonic lethal with abnormal cardiovascular system formation, and its role in cardiovascular development is unknown. To investigate its functional role in cardiovascular development in mice, ShcA was deleted in cardiomyocytes and vascular smooth muscle cells by crossing ShcA flox mice with SM22a-Cre transgenic mice. Conditional mutant mice developed signs of severe dilated cardiomyopathy, myocardial infarctions, and premature death. No evidence of a vascular contribution to the phenotype was observed. Histological analysis of the heart revealed aberrant sarcomeric Z-disk and M-band structures, and misalignments of T-tubules with Z-disks. We find that not only the ErbB3/Neuregulin signaling pathway but also the baroreceptor reflex response, which have been functionally associated, are altered in the mutant mice. We further demonstrate that ShcA interacts with Caveolin-1 and the costameric protein plasma membrane Ca(2+)/calmodulin-dependent ATPase (PMCA), and that its deletion leads to abnormal dystrophin signaling. Collectively, these results demonstrate that ShcA interacts with crucial proteins and pathways that link Z-disk and costamere.

The nuclear hormone receptor PPARγ counteracts vascular calcification by inhibiting Wnt5a signalling in vascular smooth muscle cells.

Vascular calcification is a hallmark of advanced atherosclerosis. Here we show that deletion of the nuclear receptor PPARγ in vascular smooth muscle cells of low density lipoprotein receptor (LDLr)-deficient mice fed an atherogenic diet high in cholesterol, accelerates vascular calcification with chondrogenic metaplasia within the lesions. Vascular calcification in the absence of PPARγ requires expression of the transmembrane receptor LDLr-related protein-1 in vascular smooth muscle cells. LDLr-related protein-1 promotes a previously unknown Wnt5a-dependent prochondrogenic pathway. We show that PPARγ protects against vascular calcification by inducing the expression of secreted frizzled-related protein-2, which functions as a Wnt5a antagonist. Targeting this signalling pathway may have clinical implications in the context of common complications of atherosclerosis, including coronary artery calcification and valvular sclerosis.

Differential signaling by adaptor molecules LRP1 and ShcA regulates adipogenesis by the insulin-like growth factor-1 receptor.

The low density lipoprotein receptor-related protein (LRP1) is a transmembrane receptor that integrates multiple signaling pathways. Its cytoplasmic domain serves as docking sites for several adaptor proteins such as the Src homology 2/α-collagen (ShcA), which also binds to several tyrosine kinase receptors such as the insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF-1) receptor. However, the physiological significance of the physical interaction between LRP1 and ShcA, and whether this interaction modifies tyrosine kinase receptor signaling, are still unknown. Here we report that LRP1 forms a complex with the IGF-1 receptor, and that LRP1 is required for ShcA to become sensitive to IGF-1 stimulation. Upon IGF-1 treatment, ShcA is tyrosine phosphorylated and translocates to the plasma membrane only in the presence of LRP1. This leads to the recruitment of the growth factor receptor-bound protein 2 (Grb2) to ShcA, and activation of the Ras/MAP kinase pathway. Conversely, in the absence of ShcA, IGF-1 signaling bifurcates toward the Akt/mammalian target of rapamycin pathway and accelerates adipocyte differentiation when cells are stimulated for adipogenesis. These results establish the LRP1-ShcA complex as an essential component in the IGF-1-regulated pathway for MAP kinase and Akt/mammalian target of rapamycin activation, and may help to understand the IGF-1 signaling shift from clonal expansion to growth-arrested cells and differentiation during adipogenesis.

Signaling through LRP1: Protection from atherosclerosis and beyond.

The low-density lipoprotein receptor-related protein (LRP1) is a multifunctional cell surface receptor that belongs to the LDL receptor (LDLR) gene family and that is widely expressed in several tissues. LRP1 consists of an 85-kDa membrane-bound carboxyl fragment (ß chain) and a non-covalently attached 515-kDa (α chain) amino-terminal fragment. Through its extracellular domain, LRP1 binds at least 40 different ligands ranging from lipoprotein and protease inhibitor complex to growth factors and extracellular matrix proteins. LRP-1 has also been shown to interact with scaffolding and signaling proteins via its intracellular domain in a phosphorylation-dependent manner and to function as a co-receptor partnering with other cell surface or integral membrane proteins. LRP-1 is thus implicated in two major physiological processes: endocytosis and regulation of signaling pathways, which are both involved in diverse biological roles including lipid metabolism, cell growth/differentiation processes, degradation of proteases, and tissue invasion. The embryonic lethal phenotype obtained after target disruption of the LRP-1 gene in the mouse highlights the biological importance of this receptor and revealed a critical, but yet undefined role in development. Tissue-specific gene deletion studies also reveal an important contribution of LRP1 in vascular remodeling, foam cell biology, the central nervous system, and in the molecular mechanisms of atherosclerosis.

Unusual duplication of the insulin-like receptor in the crustacean Daphnia pulex.

BACKGROUND: The insulin signaling pathway (ISP) has a key role in major physiological events like carbohydrate metabolism and growth regulation. The ISP has been well described in vertebrates and in a few invertebrate model organisms but remains largely unexplored in non-model invertebrates. This study is the first detailed genomic study of this pathway in a crustacean species, Daphnia pulex. RESULTS: The Daphnia pulex draft genome sequence assembly was scanned for major components of the ISP with a special attention to the insulin-like receptor. Twenty three putative genes are reported. The pathway appears to be generally well conserved as genes found in other invertebrates are present. Major findings include a lower number of insulin-like peptides in Daphnia as compared to other invertebrates and the presence of multiple insulin-like receptors (InR), with four genes as opposed to a single one in other invertebrates. Genes encoding for the Dappu_InR are likely the result of three duplication events and bear some unusual features. Dappu_InR-4 has undergone extensive evolutionary divergence and lacks the conserved site of the catalytic domain of the receptor tyrosine kinase. Dappu_InR-1 has a large insert and lacks the transmembranal domain in the ß-subunit. This domain is also absent in Dappu_InR-3. Dappu_InR-2 is characterized by the absence of the cystein-rich region. Real-time q-PCR confirmed the expression of all four receptors. EST analyses of cDNA libraries revealed that the four receptors were differently expressed under various conditions. CONCLUSIONS: Duplications of the insulin receptor genes might represent an important evolutionary innovation in Daphnia as they are known to exhibit extensive phenotypic plasticity in body size and in the size of defensive structures in response to predation.

Connecting information to improve health.

Effective health information systems require timely access to all health data from all sources, including sites of direct care. In most parts of the world today, these data most likely come from many different and unconnected systems-but must be organized into a composite whole. We use the word interoperability to capture what is required to accomplish this goal. We discuss five priority areas for achieving interoperability in health care applications (patient identifier, semantic interoperability, data interchange standards, core data sets, and data quality), and we contrast differences in developing and developed countries. Important next steps for health policy makers are to define a vision, develop a strategy, identify leadership, assign responsibilities, and harness resources.

LRP1 regulates architecture of the vascular wall by controlling PDGFRbeta-dependent phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase activation.

BACKGROUND: Low density lipoprotein receptor-related protein 1 (LRP1) protects against atherosclerosis by regulating the activation of platelet-derived growth factor receptor beta (PDGFRbeta) in vascular smooth muscle cells (SMCs). Activated PDGFRbeta undergoes tyrosine phosphorylation and subsequently interacts with various signaling molecules, including phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K), which binds to the phosphorylated tyrosine 739/750 residues in mice, and thus regulates actin polymerization and cell movement. METHODS AND PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: In this study, we found disorganized actin in the form of membrane ruffling and enhanced cell migration in LRP1-deficient (LRP1-/-) SMCs. Marfan syndrome-like phenotypes such as tortuous aortas, disrupted elastic layers and abnormally activated transforming growth factor beta (TGFbeta) signaling are present in smooth muscle-specific LRP1 knockout (smLRP1-/-) mice. To investigate the role of LRP1-regulated PI3K activation by PDGFRbeta in atherogenesis, we generated a strain of smLRP1-/- mice in which tyrosine 739/750 of the PDGFRbeta had been mutated to phenylalanines (PDGFRbeta F2/F2). Spontaneous atherosclerosis was significantly reduced in the absence of hypercholesterolemia in these mice compared to smLRP1-/- animals that express wild type PDGFR. Normal actin organization was restored and spontaneous SMC migration as well as PDGF-BB-induced chemotaxis was dramatically reduced, despite continued overactivation of TGFbeta signaling, as indicated by high levels of nuclear phospho-Smad2. CONCLUSIONS AND SIGNIFICANCE: Our data suggest that LRP1 regulates actin organization and cell migration by controlling PDGFRbeta-dependent activation of PI3K. TGFbeta activation alone is not sufficient for the expression of the Marfan-like vascular phenotype. Thus, regulation of PI3 Kinase by PDGFRbeta is essential for maintaining vascular integrity, and for the prevention of atherosclerosis as well as Marfan syndrome.

LRP1 controls intracellular cholesterol storage and fatty acid synthesis through modulation of Wnt signaling.

The low-density lipoprotein receptor-related protein LRP1 is a cell surface receptor with functions in diverse physiological pathways, including lipid metabolism. Here we show that LRP1-deficient fibroblasts accumulate high levels of intracellular cholesterol and cholesteryl-ester when stimulated for adipocyte differentiation. We demonstrate that LRP1 stimulates a canonical Wnt5a signaling pathway that prevents cholesterol accumulation. Moreover, we show that LRP1 is required for lipolysis and stimulates fatty acid synthesis independently of the noradrenergic pathway, through inhibition of GSK3beta and its previously unknown target acetyl-CoA carboxylase (ACC). As a result of ACC inhibition, mature LRP1-deficient adipocytes of adult mice are hypotrophic, and lower uptake of fatty acids into adipose tissue leads to their redistribution to the liver. These results establish LRP1 as a novel integrator of adipogenic differentiation and fat storage signals.

LRP1 functions as an atheroprotective integrator of TGFbeta and PDFG signals in the vascular wall: implications for Marfan syndrome.

BACKGROUND: The multifunctional receptor LRP1 controls expression, activity and trafficking of the PDGF receptor-beta in vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMC). LRP1 is also a receptor for TGFbeta1 and is required for TGFbeta mediated inhibition of cell proliferation. METHODS AND PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: We show that loss of LRP1 in VSMC (smLRP(-)) in vivo results in a Marfan-like syndrome with nuclear accumulation of phosphorylated Smad2/3, disruption of elastic layers, tortuous aorta, and increased expression of the TGFbeta target genes thrombospondin-1 (TSP1) and PDGFRbeta in the vascular wall. Treatment of smLRP1(-) animals with the PPARgamma agonist rosiglitazone abolished nuclear pSmad accumulation, reversed the Marfan-like phenotype, and markedly reduced smooth muscle proliferation, fibrosis and atherosclerosis independent of plasma cholesterol levels. CONCLUSIONS AND SIGNIFICANCE: Our findings are consistent with an activation of TGFbeta signals in the LRP1-deficient vascular wall. LRP1 may function as an integrator of proliferative and anti-proliferative signals that control physiological mechanisms common to the pathogenesis of Marfan syndrome and atherosclerosis, and this is essential for maintaining vascular wall integrity.