The Role of BMP Signaling in Endothelial Heterogeneity

Life at the crossroads: the nuclear LINC complex and vascular mechanotransduction

Vascular endothelial cells line the inner surface of all blood vessels, where they are exposed to polarized mechanical forces throughout their lifespan. Both basal substrate interactions and apical blood flow-induced shear stress regulate blood vessel development, remodeling, and maintenance of vascular homeostasis. Disruption of these interactions leads to dysfunction and vascular pathologies, although how forces are sensed and integrated to affect endothelial cell behaviors is incompletely understood. Recently the endothelial cell nucleus has emerged as a prominent force-transducing organelle that participates in vascular mechanotransduction, via communication to and from cell-cell and cell-matrix junctions. The LINC complex, composed of SUN and nesprin proteins, spans the nuclear membranes and connects the nuclear lamina, the nuclear envelope, and the cytoskeleton. Here we review LINC complex involvement in endothelial cell mechanotransduction, describe unique and overlapping functions of each LINC complex component, and consider emerging evidence that two major SUN proteins, SUN1 and SUN2, orchestrate a complex interplay that extends outward to cell-cell and cell-matrix junctions and inward to interactions within the nucleus and chromatin. We discuss these findings in relation to vascular pathologies such as Hutchinson-Gilford progeria syndrome, a premature aging disorder with cardiovascular impairment. More knowledge of LINC complex regulation and function will help to understand how the nucleus participates in endothelial cell force sensing and how dysfunction leads to cardiovascular disease.

Genome-wide profiling of angiogenic cis-regulatory elements unravels cis-regulatory SNPs for vascular abnormality

Angiogenesis is extensively involved in embryonic development and requires complex regulation networks, whose defects can cause a variety of vascular abnormalities. Cis-regulatory elements control gene expression at all developmental stages, but they have not been studied or profiled in angiogenesis yet. In this study, we exploited public DNase-seq and RNA-seq datasets from a VEGFA-stimulated in vitro angiogenic model, and carried out an integrated analysis of the transcriptome and chromatin accessibility across the entire process. Totally, we generated a bank of 47,125 angiogenic cis-regulatory elements with promoter (marker by H3K4me3) and/or enhancer (marker by H3K27ac) activities. Motif enrichment analysis revealed that these angiogenic cis-regulatory elements interacted preferentially with ETS family TFs. With this tool, we performed an association study using our WES data of TAPVC and identified rs199530718 as a cis-regulatory SNP associated with disease risk. Altogether, this study generated a genome-wide bank of angiogenic cis-regulatory elements and illustrated its utility in identifying novel cis-regulatory SNPs for TAPVC, expanding new horizons of angiogenesis as well as vascular abnormality genetics.

The signaling pathways involved in non-coding RNA regulation during osteogenic differentiation of periodontal tissue-derived cells in the field of periodontitis

Periodontitis is a prevalent oral disease caused by chronic inflammation of the periodontal tissues surrounding the teeth, which can lead to bone loss, tooth loosening, and even tooth loss. This inflammation has a negative impact on the osteogenic differentiation capacity of periodontal tissue-derived cells. Non-coding RNAs (ncRNAs) are a class of RNA molecules that do not encode proteins but can regulate various physiological processes. In this review, we summarized the critical signaling pathways that ncRNAs modulate in osteogenic differentiation of periodontal tissue-derived cells, such as the Wnt, BMP/Smad, NF-κB, and PI3-K/Akt/mTOR pathways. This comprehensive exploration of ncRNA-mediated modulation offers fresh and promising insights for prospective approaches in the management of periodontitis and the advancement of periodontal regeneration therapies.

BMP2 as a promising anticancer approach: functions and molecular mechanisms

Bone morphogenetic protein 2 (BMP2), a pluripotent factor, is a member of the transforming growth factor-beta (TGF-β) superfamily and is implicated in embryonic development and postnatal homeostasis in tissues and organs. Experimental research in the contexts of physiology and pathology has indicated that BMP2 can induce macrophages to differentiate into osteoclasts and accelerate the osteolytic mechanism, aggravating cancer cell bone metastasis. Emerging studies have stressed the potent regulatory effect of BMP2 in cancer cell differentiation, proliferation, survival, and apoptosis. Complicated signaling networks involving multiple regulatory proteins imply the significant biological functions of BMP2 in cancer. In this review, we comprehensively summarized and discussed the current evidence related to the modulation of BMP2 in tumorigenesis and development, including evidence related to the roles and molecular mechanisms of BMP2 in regulating cancer stem cells (CSCs), epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT), cancer angiogenesis and the tumor microenvironment (TME). All these findings suggest that BMP2 may be an effective therapeutic target for cancer and a new marker for assessing treatment efficacy.

Mechanistic and therapeutic perspectives of baicalin and baicalein on pulmonary hypertension: A comprehensive review

Pulmonary hypertension (PH) is a chronic and fatal disease, for which new therapeutic drugs and approaches are needed urgently. Baicalein and baicalin, the active compounds of the traditional Chinese medicine, Scutellaria baicalensis Georgi, exhibit a wide range of pharmacological activities. Numerous studies involving in vitro and in vivo models of PH have revealed that the treatment with baicalin and baicalein may be effective. This review summarizes the potential mechanisms driving the beneficial effects of baicalin and baicalein treatment on PH, including anti-inflammatory response, inhibition of pulmonary smooth muscle cell proliferation and endothelial-to-mesenchymal transformation, stabilization of the extracellular matrix, and mitigation of oxidative stress. The pharmacokinetics of these compounds have also been reviewed. The therapeutic potential of baicalin and baicalein warrants their continued study as natural treatments for PH.