Differential responses of pulmonary vascular cells from PAH patients and controls to TNFα and the effect of the BET inhibitor JQ1

Vascular restenosis following paclitaxel-coated balloon therapy is attributable to NLRP3 activation and LIN9 upregulation

Lower limb arterial occlusive disease is treated with intraluminal devices, such as paclitaxel (PTX)-coated balloons (PCBs); however, post-procedural restenosis remains a significant challenge. NLRP3 activation is known to play a significant role in atherosclerosis, but its involvement in restenosis following PCB intervention remains to be investigated. We identified that NLRP3 was differentially expressed in lower-limb arterial tissues sourced from healthy controls and patients with arterial occlusive disease. Through cell experiments, we confirmed that PTX is involved in the activation of NLRP3. Subsequently, we demonstrated that NLRP3 activation promotes the proliferation and migration of vascular smooth muscle cell (VSMC), thereby reducing their sensitivity to PTX. NLRP3 activation also stimulates the secretion of the inflammatory cytokine interleukin IL-1β. RNA sequencing of IL-1β-treated VSMC revealed the upregulation of BRD4 and LIN9. Further mechanistic investigations confirmed that IL-1β facilitates BRD4 recruitment, leading to enhanced LIN9 expression. The transcription factor LIN9 binds to the promoter region of the cell-cycle regulator AURKA, thereby promoting its transcription and subsequently upregulating the expression of the cell proliferation-associated molecule FOXM1. These processes ultimately mediate the proliferation, migration, and PTX resistance of VSMC. Additionally, we discovered that JQ1 inhibited the overexpression of the above molecules, and exhibited a synergistic effect with PTX. Our conclusions were validated through in vivo experiments in Sprague-Dawley rats. Collectively, our findings provide insights into the molecular mechanisms underlying restenosis following PCB therapy, and suggest that the combined use of JQ1 and PTX devices may represent a promising therapeutic strategy.

Asiatic acid alleviates vascular remodeling in BAPN-induced aortic dissection through inhibiting NF-κB p65/CX3CL1 signaling

Inflammation assumes a pivotal role in the aortic remodeling of aortic dissection (AD). Asiatic acid (AA), a triterpene compound, is recognized for its strong anti-inflammatory properties. Yet, its effects on β-aminopropionitrile (BAPN)-triggered AD have not been clearly established. The objective is to determine whether AA attenuates adverse aortic remodeling in BAPN-induced AD and clarify potential molecular mechanisms. In vitro studies, RAW264.7 cells pretreated with AA were challenged with lipopolysaccharide (LPS), and then the vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs)-macrophage coculture system was established to explore intercellular interactions. To induce AD, male C57BL/6J mice at three weeks of age were administered BAPN at a dosage of 1 g/kg/d for four weeks. To decipher the mechanism underlying the effects of AA, RNA sequencing analysis was conducted, with subsequent validation of these pathways through cellular experiments. AA exhibited significant suppression of M1 macrophage polarization. In the cell coculture system, AA facilitated the transformation of VSMCs into a contractile phenotype. In the mouse model of AD, AA strikingly prevented the BAPN-induced increases in inflammation cell infiltration and extracellular matrix degradation. Mechanistically, RNA sequencing analysis revealed a substantial upregulation of CX3CL1 expression in BAPN group but downregulation in AA-treated group. Additionally, it was observed that the upregulation of CX3CL1 negated the beneficial impact of AA on the polarization of macrophages and the phenotypic transformation of VSMCs. Crucially, our findings revealed that AA is capable of downregulating CX3CL1 expression, accomplishing this by obstructing the nuclear translocation of NF-κB p65. The findings indicate that AA holds promise as a prospective treatment for adverse aortic remodeling by suppressing the activity of NF-κB p65/CX3CL1 signaling pathway.

Analyzing the molecular mechanism of xuefuzhuyu decoction in the treatment of pulmonary hypertension with network pharmacology and bioinformatics and verifying molecular docking

BACKGROUND

XueFuZhuYu (XFZY), a typical Chinese herbal formula, has remarkable clinical effects for treating Pulmonary Hypertension (PH) with unclear mechanisms. Our research involved the utilization of network pharmacology to explore the traditional Chinese herbal monomers and their related targets within XFZY for PH treatment. Furthermore, molecular docking verification was performed.

METHODS

The XFZY's primary active compounds, along with their corresponding targets, were both obtained from the TCMSP, ChEMBL, and UniProt databases. The target proteins relevant to PH were sifted through OMIM, GeneCards and TTD databases. The common "XFZY-PH" targets were evaluated with Disease Ontology (DO), Gene Ontology (GO), and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) analyses with the assistance of R software. The Protein-Protein Interaction (PPI) network and compound-target-pathway network were constructed and a systematic analysis of network parameters was performed by the powerful software Cytoscape. Molecular docking was employed for assessing and verifying the interactions between the core targets and the top Chinese herbal monomer.

RESULTS

The screening included 297 targets of active compounds in XFZY and 8400 PH-related targets. DO analysis of the above common 268 targets indicated that the treatment of the diseases by XFZY is mediated by genes related to Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD), Obstructive Lung Disease (OLD), ischemia, and myocardial infarction. The findings from molecular docking indicated that the binding energies of 57 ligand-receptor pairs in PH and 20 ligand-receptor pairs in COPD-PH were lower than -7kJ•mol-1.

CONCLUSIONS

This study indicates that XFZY is a promising option within traditional Chinese medicine compound preparation for combating PH, particularly in cases associated with COPD. Our demonstration of the specific molecular mechanism of XFZY anti-PH and its effective active ingredients provides a theoretical basis for better clinical application of the compound.

Functions of RNA-Binding Proteins in Cardiovascular Disease

Gene expression is under tight regulation from the chromatin structure that regulates gene accessibility by the transcription machinery to protein degradation. At the transcript level, this regulation falls on RNA-binding proteins (RBPs). RBPs are a large and diverse class of proteins involved in all aspects of a transcript's lifecycle: splicing and maturation, localization, stability, and translation. In the past few years, our understanding of the role of RBPs in cardiovascular diseases has expanded. Here, we discuss the general structure and function of RBPs and the latest discoveries of their role in pulmonary and systemic cardiovascular diseases.