Daniela N. Didier

Creation and Characterization of a Renin Knockout Rat

The renin-angiotensin system plays an important role in the control of blood pressure (BP) and renal function. To illuminate the importance of renin in the context of a disease background in vivo, we used zinc-finger nucleases (ZFNs) designed to target the renin gene and create a renin knockout in the SS/JrHsdMcwi (SS) rat. ZFN against renin caused a 10-bp deletion in exon 5, resulting in a frameshift mutation. Plasma renin activity was undetectable in the Ren−/− rat, and renin protein was absent from the juxtaglomerular cells in the kidney. Body weight was lower in the Ren−/− rats (than in the Ren+/− or wild-type littermates), and conscious BP on low-salt diet (0.4% NaCl) was 58±2 mm Hg in the Ren−/− male rats versus 117 mm Hg in the Ren+/− littermates, a reduction of almost 50 mm Hg. Blood urea nitrogen (BUN) and plasma creatinine levels were elevated in the Ren−/− strain (BUN 112±7 versus 23±2 mg/dL and creatinine 0.53±0.02 versus 0.26±0.02 mg/dL), and kidney morphology was abnormal with a rudimentary inner renal medulla, cortical interstitial fibrosis, thickening of arterial walls, and abnormally shaped glomeruli. The development of the first rat knockout in the renin-angiotensin system demonstrates the efficacy of the ZFN technology for creating knockout rats for cardiovascular disease on any genetic background and emphasizes the role of renin in BP regulation and kidney function even in the low-renin SS rat.

Functional Local Renin-Angiotensin System in Human and Rat Periodontal Tissue

The initiation or progression of periodontitis might involve a local renin-angiotensin system (RAS) in periodontal tissue. The aim of this study was to further characterize the local RAS in human and rat periodontal tissues between healthy and periodontally-affected tissue. Components of the RAS were investigated using in vitro, ex vivo and in vivo experiments involving both human and Wistar rat periodontium. Although not upregulated when challenged with P. gingivalis-lipopolysaccharide, human gingival and periodontal ligament fibroblasts expressed RAS components. Likewise, healthy and inflamed human gingiva expressed RAS components, some of which were shown to be functional, yet no differences in expression were found between healthy and diseased gingiva. However, in inflamed tissue the immunoreactivity was greater for the AT1R compared to AT2R in fibroblasts. When compared to healthy tissue, ACE activity was increased in human gingiva from volunteers with gingivitis. Human-gingiva homogenates generated Ang II, Ang 1-9 and Ang 1-7 when incubated with precursors. In gingiva homogenates, Ang II formation from Ang I was nearly abolished only when captopril and chymostatin were combined. Ang 1-7 formation was significantly greater when human gingiva homogenates were incubated with chymostatin alone compared to incubation without any inhibitor, only captopril, or captopril and chymostatin. In rat gingiva, RAS components were also found; their expression was not different between healthy and experimentally induced periodontitis (EP) groups. However, renin inhibition (aliskiren) and an AT1R antagonist (losartan) significantly blocked EP-alveolar-bone loss in rats. Collectively, these data are consistent with the hypothesis that a local RAS system is not only present but is also functional in both human and rat periodontal tissue. Furthermore, blocking AT1R and renin can significantly prevent periodontal bone loss induced by EP in rats.

Bone marrow mononuclear cells induce beneficial remodeling and reduce diastolic dysfunction in the left ventricle of hypertensive SS/MCWi rats.

Bone marrow mononuclear cells (BMMNCs) increase capillary density and reduce fibrosis in rodents after myocardial infarction, resulting in an overall improvement in left ventricular function. Little is known about the effectiveness of BMMNC therapy in hypertensive heart disease. In the current study, we show that delivery of BMMNCs from hypertension protected SS-13(BN)/MCWi donor rats, but not BMMNC from hypertension susceptible SS/MCWi donor rats, resulted in 57.2 and 83.4% reductions in perivascular and interstitial fibrosis, respectively, as well as a 60% increase in capillary-to-myocyte count in the left ventricles (LV) of hypertensive SS/MCWi recipients. These histological changes were associated with improvements in LV compliance and relaxation (103 and 46.4% improvements, respectively). Furthermore, improved diastolic function in hypertensive SS/MCWi rats receiving SS-13(BN)/MCWi derived BMMNCs was associated with lower clinical indicators of heart failure, including reductions in end diastolic pressure (65%) and serum brain natriuretic peptide levels (49.9%) with no improvements observed in rats receiving SS/MCWi BMMNCs. SS/MCWi rats had a lower percentage of endothelial progenitor cells in their bone marrow relative to SS-13(BN)/MCWi rats. These results suggest that administration of BMMNCs can prevent or reverse pathological remodeling in hypertensive heart disease, which contributes to ameliorating diastolic dysfunction and associated symptomology. Furthermore, the health and hypertension susceptibility of the BMMNC donor are important factors influencing therapeutic efficacy, possibly via differences in the cellular composition of bone marrow.

Characterization of the genomic structure and function of regions influencing renin and angiogenesis in the SS rat

Impaired regulation of renin in Dahl salt-sensitive rats (SS/JRHsdMcwi, SS) contributes to attenuated angiogenesis in this strain. This study examined angiogenic function and genomic structure of regions surrounding the renin gene using subcongenic strains of the SS and BN/NHsdMcwi (BN) rat to identify important genomic variations between SS and BN involved in angiogenesis. Three candidate regions on Chr 13 were studied: two congenic strains containing 0.89 and 2.62 Mb portions of BN Chr 13 that excluded the BN renin allele and a third strain that contained a 2.02 Mb overlapping region that included the BN renin allele. Angiogenesis induced by electrical stimulation of the tibialis anterior muscle was attenuated in the SS compared with the BN. Congenics carrying the SS renin allele had impaired angiogenesis, while strains carrying the BN renin allele had angiogenesis restored. The exception was a congenic including a region of BN genome 0.4 Mb distal to renin that restored both renin regulation and angiogenesis. This suggests that there is a distant regulatory element in the BN capable of restoring normal regulation of the SS renin allele. The importance of ANG II in the restored angiogenic response was demonstrated by blocking with losartan. Sequencing of the 4.05 Mb candidate region in SS and BN revealed a total of 8,850 SNPs and other sequence variants. An analysis of the genes and their variants in the region suggested a number of pathways that may explain the impaired regulation of renin and angiogenesis in the SS rat.

Identification of Cell Surface Markers to Differentiate Rat Endothelial and Fibroblast Cells Using Lectin Arrays and LC–ESI-MS/MS

Vascular endothelial cells located at the inner surface of blood vessels are a key component in angiogenesis and are employed as a primary cell type in the study of angiogenesis. These endothelial cells are, however, easily contaminated with fibroblast cells, which are located in proximity to the endothelial cells, during their isolation from tissue. It is thus important to find markers to distinguish the two cell types. In the present work, lectin arrays were prepared using aldehyde-terminated self-assembled monolayers (SAMs) and utilized to explore cell surface carbohydrate expression patterns on endothelial and fibroblast cells. It was found that the lectins Griffonia simplicifolia II (GS II) and Ulex europaeus agglutinin I (UEA I) selectively bind to rat fibroblast cells and not to rat endothelial cells. GS II-binding glycoproteins on fibroblast cells, which are potential cell surface markers to differentiate endothelial and fibroblast cells, were captured on a GS II lectin column and analyzed by LC-ESI-MS/MS. Six candidate cell surface glycoproteins were identified. Differential expression was confirmed by Western blot analysis for two of these proteins, lysosome-associated membrane glycoprotein-1 and transmembrane glycoprotein NMB.

Mechanisms of cardioprotection resulting from Brown Norway chromosome 16 substitution in the salt-sensitive Dahl rat

The SS-16(BN)/Mcwi consomic rat was produced by the introgression of chromosome 16 from the Brown Norway (BN/NHsdMcwi) rat onto the genetic background of the Dahl salt-sensitive (SS/Mcwi) rat by marker-assisted breeding. We have previously shown that the normotensive SS-16(BN)/Mcwi consomic strain is better protected from developing left ventricular dysfunction and fibrosis with aging than the hypertensive SS/Mcwi parental strain; however, the mechanism of this protection was not clear since the SS-16(BN)/Mcwi had both lowered blood pressure and an altered genetic background compared with SS/Mcwi. Microarray analysis of SS-16(BN)/Mcwi and SS/Mcwi left ventricle tissue and subsequent protein pathway analysis were used to identify alterations in gene expression in signaling pathways involved with the observed cardioprotection on the SS background. The SS-16(BN)/Mcwi rats exhibited much higher mRNA levels of expression of transcription factor JunD, a gene found on chromosome 16. Additionally, high levels of differential gene expression were found in pathways involved with angiogenesis, oxidative stress, and growth factor signaling. We tested the physiological relevance of these pathways by experimentally determining the responsiveness of neonatal cardiomyocytes to factors from identified pathways and found that cells isolated from SS-16(BN)/Mcwi rats had a greater growth response to epidermal growth factor and endothelin-1 than those from parental SS/Mcwi. We also demonstrate that the SS-16(BN)/Mcwi is better protected from developing fibrosis with surgically elevated afterload than other normotensive strains, indicating that gene-gene interactions resulting from BN chromosomal substitution confer specific cardioprotection. When combined with our previous findings, these data suggest that that SS-16(BN)/Mcwi may have an increased angiogenic potential and better protection from oxidative stress than the parental SS/Mcwi strain. Additionally, the early transient idiopathic left ventricular hypertrophy in the SS-16(BN)/Mcwi may be related to altered myocyte sensitivity to growth factors.

Mechanisms of Mas1 Receptor-Mediated Signaling in the Vascular EndotheliumHighlights

Objective— Angiotensin II (AngII) has been shown to regulate angiogenesis and at high pathophysiological doses to cause vasoconstriction through the AngII receptor type 1. Angiotensin 1 to 7 (Ang-(1–7)) acting through the Mas1 receptor can act antagonistically to high pathophysiological levels of AngII by inducing vasodilation, whereas the effects of Ang-(1–7) signaling on angiogenesis are less defined. To complicate the matter, there is growing evidence that a subpressor dose of AngII produces phenotypes similar to Ang-(1–7). Approach and Results— This study shows that low-dose Ang-(1–7), acting through the Mas1 receptor, promotes angiogenesis and vasodilation similar to a low, subpressor dose of AngII acting through AngII receptor type 1. In addition, we show through in vitro tube formation that Ang-(1–7) augments the angiogenic response in rat microvascular endothelial cells. Using proteomic and genomic analyses, downstream components of Mas1 receptor signaling were identified, including Rho family of GTPases, phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase, protein kinase D1, mitogen-activated protein kinase, and extracellular signal–related kinase signaling. Further experimental antagonism of extracellular signal–related kinases 1/2 and p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase signaling inhibited endothelial tube formation and vasodilation when stimulated with equimolar, low doses of either AngII or Ang-(1–7). Conclusions— These results significantly expand the known Ang-(1–7)/Mas1 receptor signaling pathway and demonstrate an important distinction between the pathological effects of elevated and suppressed AngII compared with the beneficial effects of AngII normalization and Ang-(1–7) administration. The observed convergence of Ang-(1–7)/Mas1 and AngII/AngII receptor type 1 signaling at low ligand concentrations suggests a nuanced regulation in vasculature. These data also reinforce the importance of mitogen-activated protein kinase/extracellular signal–related kinase signaling in maintaining vascular function.