title: The effect of tyrphostin AG-556 on intimal thickening in a mouse model of arterial injury.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Inflammation has been shown to play an important role in promoting the response to arterial injury and proinflammatory cytokines, such as tumor necrosis factor (TNF) alpha, are candidate mediators. AG-556 is a tyrosine kinase inhibitor proven to be effective in a model of multiple sclerosis-like syndrome in mice due to its immunomodulating effect. In the current study, we investigated the effect of the tyrphostin AG-556 on neointimal thickening and cytokine profile in a model of arterial injury in the mouse.
  
  
  METHODS
  Injury was induced by external cuff placement on the left femoral artery of wild-type C57BL/6 mice. AG-556 dissolved in DMSO was injected intraperitoneally daily to the injured mice in a dosage of 2 mg/mouse. Control mice received DMSO injections. Histological analysis was carried out to assess neointimal formation. Splenocytes were cultured in the absence and presence of a mitogen for evaluation of thymidine incorporation and cytokine production.
  
  
  RESULTS
  AG-556 treatment significantly attenuated intimal thickening (43,000+/-17,000 microm2; n=11) when compared to DMSO administration (286,000+/-127,000 microm2; n=10; P<0.05). Basal interferon-gamma production by splenocytes from AG-556-treated mice was increased by approximately 20-fold in comparison with levels in DMSO-treated animals, whereas Con-A induced secretion of the cytokine was similar between both groups. Levels of TNF-alpha, IL-4 and IL-10 in the culture supernatant from treated and non-treated animals did not differ significantly.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The tyrosine kinase inhibitor AG-556 may have a role in the reduction of intimal thickening. The effect could be mediated via an immune modulating effect involving a significant increase in the smooth muscle cell inhibitory cytokine IFN-gamma.
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiology, Tel-Aviv Sourasky Medical Center, affiliated to the Sackler Faculty of Medicine, 6 Weizman Street, Tel Aviv University, Israel. jacobg@post.tau.ac.il
authors.forename: Jacob
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: George
authors.forename: Iris
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Barshack
authors.forename: Pnina
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Keren
authors.forename: Aviv
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Gazit
authors.forename: Alexander
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Levitzki
authors.forename: Gad
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Keren
authors.forename: Arie
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Roth
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D016207:Cytokines / Q000096:biosynthesis / Q000276:immunology; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D004797:Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay; D005260:Female; D005263:Femoral Artery / Q000293:injuries* / Q000473:pathology*; D005434:Flow Cytometry; D007371:Interferon-gamma / Q000187:drug effects / Q000276:immunology; D008214:Lymphocytes / Q000187:drug effects / Q000276:immunology; D008264:Macrophages / Q000187:drug effects / Q000276:immunology; D051379:Mice; D014409:Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha / Q000096:biosynthesis / Q000187:drug effects; D017539:Tunica Intima / Q000187:drug effects*; D020032:Tyrphostins / Q000494:pharmacology*
chemical_list: D016207:Cytokines; D014409:Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha; D020032:Tyrphostins; C098981:AG 556; D007371:Interferon-gamma