title: PKC/NADPH oxidase are involved in the protective effect of pioglitazone in high homocysteine-induced paracrine dyfunction in endothelial progenitor cells.
abstract: Increasing evidence suggests that EPCs improve neovascularization and endothelial regeneration via the production of paracrine factors. VEGF and IL-8 are major cytokines involved in EPC-mediated angiogenesis and re-endothelialization. In our previous studies, Hcy impaired EPC migratory and adhesive activities. We devised this study to determine whether Hcy could affect the expression and secretion of VEGF and IL-8 from EPCs. We found that high levels of Hcy (100-500 μM) decreased the EPC-mediated protein secretion and mRNA expression of VEGF and IL-8. Moreover, PIO, a PPARγ agonist, has been suggested to regulate EPC adhesion, migration, survival. In this study, PIO normalized the production of these cytokines by EPCs stimulated with Hcy. These effects of Hcy and PIO were primarily mediated by PKC and ROS via NADPH oxidase. We further confirmed this mechanism via knockdown of the NADPH oxidase subunits p67phox and Nox2. Furthermore, the PPARγ inhibitor GW9662 was not observed to abrogate the beneficial effect of PIO, indicating that PIO protected EPC paracrine function against Hcy in a PPARγ-independent manner.
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiology, Sir Run Run Shaw Hospital, College of Medicine, Zhejiang University Hangzhou 310016, China.
authors.forename: Shengjie
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Xu
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiology, Sir Run Run Shaw Hospital, College of Medicine, Zhejiang University Hangzhou 310016, China.
authors.forename: Yanbo
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Zhao
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiology, Sir Run Run Shaw Hospital, College of Medicine, Zhejiang University Hangzhou 310016, China.
authors.forename: Chongying
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Jin
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiology, Sir Run Run Shaw Hospital, College of Medicine, Zhejiang University Hangzhou 310016, China.
authors.forename: Lu
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Yu
authors.affiliation: The Province Center for Cardio-Cerebral-Vascular Disease, Zhejiang Hospital Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China.
authors.forename: Fang
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Ding
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiology, Sir Run Run Shaw Hospital, College of Medicine, Zhejiang University Hangzhou 310016, China.
authors.forename: Guosheng
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Fu
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiology, Sir Run Run Shaw Hospital, College of Medicine, Zhejiang University Hangzhou 310016, China.
authors.forename: Junhui
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Zhu
keywords: Paracrine cytokines; p67phox; reactive oxygen species; siRNA