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Stepanova V, Jayaraman PS, Zaitsev SV, Lebedeva T, Bdeir K, Kershaw R, Holman KR, Parfyonova YV, Semina EV, Beloglazova IB, Tkachuk VA, Cines DB. Urokinase-type Plasminogen Activator (uPA) Promotes Angiogenesis by Attenuating Proline-rich Homeodomain Protein (PRH) Transcription Factor Activity and De-repressing Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor (VEGF) Receptor Expression. J Biol Chem 2016; 291:15029-45. [PMID: 27151212 DOI: 10.1074/jbc.m115.678490] [Citation(s) in RCA: 38] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/13/2015] [Indexed: 01/09/2023] Open
Abstract
Urokinase-type plasminogen activator (uPA) regulates angiogenesis and vascular permeability through proteolytic degradation of extracellular matrix and intracellular signaling initiated upon its binding to uPAR/CD87 and other cell surface receptors. Here, we describe an additional mechanism by which uPA regulates angiogenesis. Ex vivo VEGF-induced vascular sprouting from Matrigel-embedded aortic rings isolated from uPA knock-out (uPA(-/-)) mice was impaired compared with vessels emanating from wild-type mice. Endothelial cells isolated from uPA(-/-) mice show less proliferation and migration in response to VEGF than their wild type counterparts or uPA(-/-) endothelial cells in which expression of wild type uPA had been restored. We reported previously that uPA is transported from cell surface receptors to nuclei through a mechanism that requires its kringle domain. Intranuclear uPA modulates gene transcription by binding to a subset of transcription factors. Here we report that wild type single-chain uPA, but not uPA variants incapable of nuclear transport, increases the expression of cell surface VEGF receptor 1 (VEGFR1) and VEGF receptor 2 (VEGFR2) by translocating to the nuclei of ECs. Intranuclear single-chain uPA binds directly to and interferes with the function of the transcription factor hematopoietically expressed homeodomain protein or proline-rich homeodomain protein (HHEX/PRH), which thereby lose their physiologic capacity to repress the activity of vehgr1 and vegfr2 gene promoters. These studies identify uPA-dependent de-repression of vegfr1 and vegfr2 gene transcription through binding to HHEX/PRH as a novel mechanism by which uPA mediates the pro-angiogenic effects of VEGF and identifies a potential new target for control of pathologic angiogenesis.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Padma-Sheela Jayaraman
- School of Immunity and Infection, College of Medical and Dental Sciences, University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham B152TT, United Kingdom
| | - Sergei V Zaitsev
- Pharmacology, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104
| | | | - Khalil Bdeir
- From the Departments of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine and
| | - Rachael Kershaw
- School of Immunity and Infection, College of Medical and Dental Sciences, University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham B152TT, United Kingdom
| | - Kelci R Holman
- College of Arts and Sciences, Drexel University, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104
| | - Yelena V Parfyonova
- Russian Cardiology Research Center, Moscow 121552, Russia, School (Faculty) of Fundamental Medicine, Lomonosov Moscow State University, Moscow, 117192, Russia, and
| | - Ekaterina V Semina
- Russian Cardiology Research Center, Moscow 121552, Russia, School (Faculty) of Fundamental Medicine, Lomonosov Moscow State University, Moscow, 117192, Russia, and
| | | | - Vsevolod A Tkachuk
- Russian Cardiology Research Center, Moscow 121552, Russia, School (Faculty) of Fundamental Medicine, Lomonosov Moscow State University, Moscow, 117192, Russia, and
| | - Douglas B Cines
- From the Departments of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine and
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