Role of activator protein-1 on the effect of arginine-glycine-aspartic acid containing peptides on transforming growth factor-beta1 promoter activity.

While arginine-glycine-aspartic acid-based peptidomimetics have been employed for the treatment of cardiovascular disorders and cancer, their use in other contexts remains to be explored. Arginine-glycine-aspartic acid-serine induces Transforming growth factor-beta1 transcription in human mesangial cells, but the molecular mechanisms involved have not been studied extensively. We explored whether this effect could be due to Activator protein-1 activation and studied the potential pathways involved. Addition of arginine-glycine-aspartic acid-serine promoted Activator protein-1 binding to its cognate sequence within the Transforming growth factor-beta1 promoter as well as c-jun and c-fos protein abundance. Moreover, this effect was suppressed by curcumin, a c-Jun N terminal kinase inhibitor, and was absent when the Activator protein-1 cis-regulatory element was deleted. Activator protein-1 binding was dependent on the activity of integrin linked kinase, as transfection with a dominant negative mutant suppressed both Activator protein-1 binding and c-jun and c-fos protein increment. Integrin linked kinase was, in turn, dependent on Phosphoinositol-3 kinase activity. Arginine-glycine-aspartic acid-serine stimulated Phosphoinositol-3 kinase activity, and Transforming growth factor-beta1 promoter activation was abrogated by the use of Phosphoinositol-3 kinase specific inhibitors. In summary, we propose that arginine-glycine-aspartic acid-serine activates Integrin linked kinase via the Phosphoinositol-3 kinase pathway and this leads to activation of c-jun and c-fos and increased Activator protein-1 binding and Transforming growth factor-beta1 promoter activity. These data may contribute to understand the molecular mechanisms involved in the cellular actions of arginine-glycine-aspartic acid-related peptides and enhance their relevance as these products evolve into clinical therapeutic use.

Envejecimiento renal / Renal aging

Frecuentemente infraestimado, el deterioro de la función renal característico delenvejecimiento tiene consecuencias clínicas muy relevantes. En el presente artículose analizan algunos aspectos de la biología celular y molecular de este proceso,subrayándose el papel crítico del stress oxidativo y del TGF ��, así como tambiénprobablemente de condicionantes genéticos. Estos conocimientos pueden contribuira desarrollar estrategias terapéuticas útiles para prevenir el declinar de la funciónrenal que acontece con el envejecimiento

Frequently underestimated, the deterioration of the renal function characteristicof the aging has very prominent clinical consequences. In the present article someaspects of the cellular and molecular biology of this process are analysed. The criticalrole of the oxidative stress and of TGF �� are underlined. Determinant geneticfactors are also mentioned. Such a knowledge can contribute to develop therapeuticalstrategies to prevent the decline of the renal function that happens withthe aging

Collagen I upregulates extracellular matrix gene expression and secretion of TGF-beta 1 by cultured human mesangial cells.

Progressive renal diseases are characterized by an increased synthesis of extracellular matrix (ECM) components. The mechanisms involved in the development of these alterations are not completely known, but a crucial role for TGF-beta 1 has been suggested. Moreover, the ability of the ECM to modulate the phenotypic expression of different cell types has been widely described. In experiments presented here, human mesangial cells (HMC) were grown on collagen type I (COL I) or IV (COL IV). ECM protein and TGF-beta 1 mRNA expression were evaluated by Northern blot analysis, and TGF-beta 1 secretion was evaluated by ELISA. The involvement of tyrosine kinase and serine-threonine kinase pathways was studied by Western blot analysis, immunofluorescence, and in vitro kinase assays. HMC cultured on COL I showed an increased mRNA expression of COL I and COL IV, fibronectin, and TGF-beta 1. Both tyrosine phosphorylation and integrin-linked kinase (ILK) activity increased when HMC were cultured on COL I, and blockade of these pathways inhibited the increased secretion of TGF-beta 1. In conclusion, the present results support a role for extracellular COL I in the regulation of TGF-beta 1 synthesis during progressive renal sclerosis and fibrosis and the subsequent increase in newly synthesized ECM proteins. In addition, ILK, along with the tyrosine kinases, participates in the genesis of this effect.

Arg-Gly-Asp-Ser (RGDS) peptide stimulates transforming growth factor beta1 transcription and secretion through integrin activation.

Extracellular matrix (ECM) components, through specific peptide motifs such as Arg-Gly-Asp (RGD), interact with integrins and can modify the behavior of cells. Transforming growth factor-beta1 (TGF-beta1) is the main cytokine involved in the synthesis of ECM proteins. We analyzed the effect of a RGD-containing peptide, as Arg-Gly-Asp-Ser (RGDS), on the regulation of TGF-beta1 secretion in cultured human mesangial cells. We found that RGDS increased mRNA expression and secretion of TGF-beta1 by stimulating the TGF-beta1 gene promoter. This effect was dependent on the interaction of RGDS with integrins. We evaluated the signaling pathways implicated in TGF-beta1 production by analyzing the effect of RGDS on kinase-related integrins. RGDS stimulated tyrosine phosphorylation as well as integrin-linked kinase (ILK) activity. However, tyrosine kinase inhibitors did not prevent the RGDS effect. In contrast, the inhibition of ILK by cell transfection with a kinase dead-ILK completely abolished the increased TGF-beta1 secretion and promoter activity in the presence of RGDS. Thus RGDS modulates the secretion of TGF-beta1, probably through increased synthesis by interacting with integrins and activating ILK. This supports a role for ECM components in the regulation of their own secretion.

Angiotensin II induces a rapid and transient increase of reactive oxygen species.

Vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMC) exhibit a hypertrophic and contractile response after angiotensin II (Ang II) treatment, and the NADH/NADPH oxidase-dependent synthesis of hydrogen peroxide (H(2)O(2)) seems to play a central role in these responses. Present experiments were designed to analyze the mechanisms responsible for the rapid changes induced by Ang II in the intracellular H(2)O(2) concentration in VSMC. Ang II induced a quick and transient increase of dichlorodihydrofluorescein (DCHF) fluorescence in VSMC, an effect that was completely abolished by catalase and by diethyldithiocarbamate, a cell-permeable superoxide dismutase inhibitor. Losartan and pertussis toxin prevented the stimulatory effect of Ang II. Both diphenylene iodonium (NADH/NADPH oxidase blocker) and 3-(4-octadecylbenzoyl)acrylic acid (phospholipase A2 blocker) inhibited the changes in DCHF fluorescence induced by Ang II, in a dose-dependent fashion, and the effects of both inhibitors were additive. These data demonstrate that Ang II induces a very quick and transient increase of H(2)O(2) in VSMC. This effect depends on the receptor type 1, is linked to a G protein, and involves both NADH/NADPH oxidase and phospholipase A2 activation. The mechanism may be related to the previously proposed role of H(2)O(2) in the genesis of the Ang II-induced cell contraction.

Phenotypic modifications of human mesangial cells by extracellular matrix: the importance of matrix in the contractile response to reactive oxygen species.

The progression of chronic renal diseases is characterized by the accumulation of extracellular matrix proteins in the glomerulus. The present experiments were designed to analyze the effect of hydrogen peroxide on the contractile and proliferative phenotypes of human mesangial cells grown on different culture substrates: plastic, collagen type I, and collagen type IV. Contraction was analyzed by measuring planar cell surface area and myosin light chain phosphorylation, whereas proliferation was studied by [(3)H]thymidine incorporation. No changes were detected in the proliferation rate of human mesangial cells grown on different culture substrates, neither under basal conditions nor in the presence of fetal calf serum or H(2)O(2). Cells grown on plastic or collagen did not contract in the presence of H(2)O(2), but cells grown on collagen I elicited a significant contraction with H(2)O(2). Platelet-activating factor induced contraction of human mesangial cells on the three culture substrates. The different contractile responses observed were not due to different degradation rates of H(2)O(2). The present experiments support the importance of extracellular matrix in the response to exogenous stimuli and point to the possibility that patients with changes in the mesangial matrix as a result of chronic renal diseases may have an increased susceptibility to the pathological actions of reactive oxygen species.

Age-related increase in expression of TGF-beta1 in the rat kidney: relationship to morphologic changes.

In the kidney, aging is characterized by the development of structural changes, including glomerulosclerosis and interstitial fibrosis. Transforming growth factor-beta1 (TGF-beta1) is known to play a critical role in the genesis of these alterations in pathologic conditions. The present experiments were designed to test the hypothesis that TGF-beta1 may be involved in the development of age-related histopathologic changes in rat kidney, and that captopril, an angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitor, may influence the progression of glomerular and interstitial lesions. In this study, 3-, 18-, 24-, and 30-mo-old rats were examined, and an age-related increase in urinary protein excretion was found; plasma creatinine and systolic BP did not change. Significant structural changes, including glomerular sclerosis and interstitial fibrosis, were found in the group of aged rats (24- and 30-mo-old). Immunostaining for TGF-beta in the renal cortex interstitium was increased in the group of 24-mo-old rats, with a parallel increase in TGF-beta1 mRNA expression, measured with reverse-transcription PCR. Captopril-treated animals showed a statistically significant decrease in urinary protein excretion but no significant changes in BP. Moreover, captopril reduced the extent of interstitial fibrosis, but did not affect the degree of glomerulosclerosis. A significant inhibition of TGF-beta1 mRNA expression was observed in the captopril-treated animals. These findings suggest that TGF-beta1 may act as a fibrogenic growth factor that could be responsible, at least partially, for the renal interstitial fibrosis associated with aging. Treatment with captopril might delay the progression of these lesions.

Nitric oxide synthase inhibitors attenuate transforming-growth-factor-beta 1-stimulated capillary organization in vitro.

Angiogenesis is a complex process involving endothelial cell (EC) proliferation, migration, differentiation, and organization into patent capillary networks. Nitric oxide (NO), an EC mediator, has been reported to be antigenic as well as proangiogenic in different models of in vivo angiogenesis. Our aim was to investigate the role of NO in capillary organization using rat microvascular ECs (RFCs) grown in three-dimensional (3D) collagen gels. RFCs placed in 3D cultures exhibited extensive tube formation in the presence of transforming growth factor-beta 1. Addition of the NO synthase (NOS) inhibitors L-nitro-arginine methylester (L-NAME, 1 mmol/L) or L-monomethyl-nitro-l-arginine (1 mmol/L) inhibited tube formation and the accumulation of nitrite in the media by approximately 50%. Incubation of the 3D cultures with excess L-arginine reversed the inhibitory effect of L-NAME on tube formation. In contrast to the results obtained in 3D cultures, inhibition of NO synthesis by L-NAME did not influence RFC proliferation in two-dimensional (2D) cultures or antagonize the ability of transforming growth factor-beta 1 to suppress EC proliferation in 2D cultures. Reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction revealed the constitutive expression of all three NOS isoforms, neuronal, inducible, and endothelial NOSs, in 2D and 3D cultures. Moreover, Western blot analysis demonstrated the presence of immunoreactive protein for all NOS isoforms in 3D cultures of RFCs. In addition, in the face of NOS blockade, co-treatment with the NO donor sodium nitroprusside or the stable analog of cGMP, 8-bromo-cGMP, restored capillary tube formation. Thus, the autocrine production of NO and the activation of soluble guanylate cyclase are necessary events in the process of differentiation and in vitro capillary tube organization of RFCs.