title: Retinal glial cells stimulate microvascular pericyte proliferation via fibroblast growth factor and platelet-derived growth factor in vitro.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To investigate whether retinal glial cells (RGCs), which are believed to play an important role in the development and maintenance of microvessels, stimulate the proliferation of retinal bovine microvascular pericytes, an essential component of the vessels.
  
  
  METHODS
  Conditioned medium (CM) was collected from a primary culture of RGC obtained from chick embryonic retina. The cell number was assayed after stimulation by RGC-CM. Also, by neutralizing antibody and reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR), we tried to identify which factor of the RGCs contributes to the pericyte stimulation.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Pericyte proliferation was stimulated by RGC-CM in a dose-dependent manner. Platelet-derived growth factor-BB (PDGF-BB), acidic fibroblast growth factor (aFGF), and basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF) stimulated pericyte proliferation; however, PDGF-AA, transforming growth factor-beta2 (TGF-beta2), and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) did not. The RGC-CM-dependent stimulative effect was blocked, in part, by the neutralizing antibodies for aFGF, bFGF, and PDGF. A mixture of these three antibodies completely blocked the stimulation. RT-PCR revealed that RNA for aFGF, bFGF, and TGF-beta2 were expressed in RGCs.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Pericyte growth is stimulated in vitro by RGC-CM through aFGF, bFGF, PDGF-BB, at least in part. This finding suggests that RGCs may modulate in vivo pericyte cell growth through these three growth factors.
authors.affiliation: Department of Ophthalmology, Osaka University Medical School, Osaka, Japan.
authors.forename: Yasushi
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Ikuno
authors.forename: Sawako
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Hibino
authors.forename: Hajime
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Bando
authors.forename: Yoshimi
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Kawasaki
authors.forename: Takao
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Nakamura
authors.forename: Yasuo
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Tano
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000077214:Becaplermin; D002196:Capillaries / Q000166:cytology; D002417:Cattle; D002455:Cell Division / Q000187:drug effects; D002478:Cells, Cultured; D002642:Chick Embryo; D017077:Culture Media, Conditioned / Q000494:pharmacology; D004305:Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; D016220:Fibroblast Growth Factor 1 / Q000235:genetics / Q000494:pharmacology*; D016222:Fibroblast Growth Factor 2 / Q000235:genetics / Q000494:pharmacology*; D006801:Humans; D009457:Neuroglia / Q000502:physiology*; D020286:Pericytes / Q000166:cytology*; D010982:Platelet-Derived Growth Factor / Q000235:genetics / Q000494:pharmacology*; D020574:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-sis; D012333:RNA, Messenger / Q000378:metabolism; D012160:Retina / Q000166:cytology*; D012165:Retinal Ganglion Cells / Q000502:physiology*; D020133:Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction
chemical_list: D017077:Culture Media, Conditioned; D010982:Platelet-Derived Growth Factor; D020574:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-sis; D012333:RNA, Messenger; D016222:Fibroblast Growth Factor 2; D016220:Fibroblast Growth Factor 1; D000077214:Becaplermin