title: Connective tissue growth factor is necessary for retinal capillary basal lamina thickening in diabetic mice.
abstract: Experimental prevention of basal lamina (BL) thickening of retinal capillaries ameliorates early vascular changes caused by diabetes. Connective tissue growth factor (CTGF) is upregulated early in diabetes in the human retina and is a potent inducer of expression of BL components. We hypothesize that CTGF is causally involved in diabetes-induced BL thickening of retinal capillaries. To test this hypothesis, we compared the effects of streptozotocin (STZ)-induced diabetes on retinal capillary BL thickness between wild-type mice (CTGF+/+) and mice lacking one functional CTGF allele (CTGF+/-). Differences in BL thickness were calculated by quantitative analysis of electron microscopic images of transversally sectioned capillaries in and around the inner nuclear layer of the retina. We show that BL thickening was significant in diabetic CTGF+/+ mice compared with control CTGF+/+ mice, whereas diabetes did not significantly induce BL thickening in CTGF+/- mice. We conclude that CTGF expression is necessary for diabetes-induced BL thickening and suggest that reduction of CTGF levels may be protective against the development of diabetic retinopathy.
authors.affiliation: Department of Cell Biology and Histology, Academic Medical Center, Meibergdreef 15, 1105 AZ Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: Esther J
authors.initials: EJ
authors.lastname: Kuiper
authors.forename: Rogier
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: van Zijderveld
authors.forename: Peggy
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Roestenberg
authors.forename: Karen M
authors.initials: KM
authors.lastname: Lyons
authors.forename: Roel
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Goldschmeding
authors.forename: Ingeborg
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Klaassen
authors.forename: Cornelis J F
authors.initials: CJ
authors.lastname: Van Noorden
authors.forename: Reinier O
authors.initials: RO
authors.lastname: Schlingemann
mesh_terms: D000483:Alleles; D000818:Animals; D001485:Basement Membrane / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology*; D002196:Capillaries / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology; D055513:Connective Tissue Growth Factor; D003921:Diabetes Mellitus, Experimental / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology*; D005260:Female; D018628:Gene Dosage; D017874:Immediate-Early Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology*; D036341:Intercellular Signaling Peptides and Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology*; D051379:Mice; D008817:Mice, Mutant Strains; D009392:Nephrectomy; D012171:Retinal Vessels / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology*
chemical_list: C526317:CCN2 protein, human; C526318:CCN2 protein, mouse; D017874:Immediate-Early Proteins; D036341:Intercellular Signaling Peptides and Proteins; D055513:Connective Tissue Growth Factor