title: Apoptosis is involved in the senescence of endothelial cells induced by angiotensin II.
abstract: Vascular endothelial cells have a finite cell lifespan and eventually enter an irreversible growth arrest, cellular senescence. The functional changes associated with cellular senescence are thought to contribute to human aging and age-related cardiovascular disorders, e.g. atherosclerosis. In this study, induction of Angiotensin II (Ang II) promoted a growth arrest with phenotypic characteristics of cell senescence, such as enlarged cell shapes, increased senescence-associated beta-galactosidase (SA-beta-gal) positive staining cell, and depressed cell proliferation. Apoptotic changes were increased in senescent cells, with a small subset of the senescent cells showing aberrant morphology such as pronounced nuclear fragmentation or multiple micronuclei. The results suggest cell apoptosis is possibly an important factor in the process of pathologic and physiologic senescence of endothelial cells as well as vascular aging.
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiology, The First Affiliated Hospital of China Medical University, No.155, Nanjing North street, Heping District, Shenyang, Liaoning Province 110001, China.
authors.forename: Hai-Yan
authors.initials: HY
authors.lastname: Shan
authors.forename: Xiao-Juan
authors.initials: XJ
authors.lastname: Bai
authors.forename: Xiang-Mei
authors.initials: XM
authors.lastname: Chen
mesh_terms: D000804:Angiotensin II / Q000378:metabolism*; D017209:Apoptosis / Q000502:physiology*; D015415:Biomarkers / Q000378:metabolism; D002453:Cell Cycle / Q000502:physiology; D002460:Cell Line; D048430:Cell Shape; D002470:Cell Survival; D016922:Cellular Senescence / Q000502:physiology*; D042783:Endothelial Cells / Q000502:physiology* / Q000648:ultrastructure; D006801:Humans; D013194:Staining and Labeling
chemical_list: D015415:Biomarkers; D000804:Angiotensin II