Ramping up RANTES in the acute response to arterial injury

Network analyses reveal new insights into the effect of multicomponent Tr14 compared to single-component diclofenac in an acute inflammation model

BACKGROUND

Modifying the acute inflammatory response has wide clinical benefits. Current options include non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) and therapies that may resolve inflammation. Acute inflammation involves multiple cell types and various processes. We, therefore, investigated whether an immunomodulatory drug that acts simultaneously at multiple sites shows greater potential to resolve acute inflammation more effectively and with fewer side effects than a common anti-inflammatory drug developed as a small molecule for a single target. In this work, we used time-series gene expression profiles from a wound healing mouse model to compare the effects of Traumeel (Tr14), a multicomponent natural product, to diclofenac, a single component NSAID on inflammation resolution.

RESULTS

We advance previous studies by mapping the data onto the "Atlas of Inflammation Resolution", followed by in silico simulations and network analysis. We found that Tr14 acts primarily on the late phase of acute inflammation (during resolution) compared to diclofenac, which suppresses acute inflammation immediately after injury.

CONCLUSIONS

Our results provide new insights how network pharmacology of multicomponent drugs may support inflammation resolution in inflammatory conditions.

MCP-1 contributes to arteriovenous fistula failure

Vascular access dysfunction compromises the care of patients on chronic hemodialysis. Elucidating the mechanisms of such dysfunction and devising strategies that may interrupt neointimal hyperplasia and relevant pathogenetic pathways are essential. Here, we show that, in the venous segment of a murine model of an arteriovenous fistula, monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 (MCP-1) mRNA and protein increase, accompanied by increased activity of the transcription factors NF-κB and AP-1. Genetic deficiency of MCP-1 proved markedly protective in this murine model, reflected by increased fistula patency 6 weeks after its formation, decreased venous wall thickness, and increased luminal area. An early effect of MCP-1 deficiency was the attenuation of the marked induction of CCL5 (RANTES) that occurred in this model, a chemokine recently recognized as a critical participant in vascular injury. Finally, in a rat model of an arteriovenous fistula, we localized expression of MCP-1 to the endothelium, proliferating smooth muscle cells and infiltrating leukocytes. In summary, marked upregulation of MCP-1 occurs in the venous segment of an arteriovenous fistula in rodents, and this vasculopathic chemokine contributes to failure of the fistula.