Sina Y. Rabbany

Inductive angiocrine signals from sinusoidal endothelium are required for liver regeneration

During embryogenesis, endothelial cells induce organogenesis before the development of circulation. These findings suggest that endothelial cells not only form passive conduits to deliver nutrients and oxygen, but also establish an instructive vascular niche, which through elaboration of paracrine trophogens stimulates organ regeneration, in a manner similar to endothelial-cell-derived angiocrine factors that support haematopoiesis. However, the precise mechanism by which tissue-specific subsets of endothelial cells promote organogenesis in adults is unknown. Here we demonstrate that liver sinusoidal endothelial cells (LSECs) constitute a unique population of phenotypically and functionally defined VEGFR3+CD34−VEGFR2+VE-cadherin+FactorVIII+CD45− endothelial cells, which through the release of angiocrine trophogens initiate and sustain liver regeneration induced by 70% partial hepatectomy. After partial hepatectomy, residual liver vasculature remains intact without experiencing hypoxia or structural damage, which allows study of physiological liver regeneration. Using this model, we show that inducible genetic ablation of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF)-A receptor-2 (VEGFR2) in the LSECs impairs the initial burst of hepatocyte proliferation (days 1–3 after partial hepatectomy) and subsequent reconstitution of the hepatovascular mass (days 4–8 after partial hepatectomy) by inhibiting upregulation of the endothelial-cell-specific transcription factor Id1. Accordingly, Id1-deficient mice also manifest defects throughout liver regeneration, owing to diminished expression of LSEC-derived angiocrine factors, including hepatocyte growth factor (HGF) and Wnt2. Notably, in in vitro co-cultures, VEGFR2-Id1 activation in LSECs stimulates hepatocyte proliferation. Indeed, intrasplenic transplantation of Id1+/+ or Id1−/− LSECs transduced with Wnt2 and HGF (Id1−/−Wnt2+HGF+ LSECs) re-establishes an inductive vascular niche in the liver sinusoids of the Id1−/− mice, initiating and restoring hepatovascular regeneration. Therefore, in the early phases of physiological liver regeneration, VEGFR2-Id1-mediated inductive angiogenesis in LSECs through release of angiocrine factors Wnt2 and HGF provokes hepatic proliferation. Subsequently, VEGFR2-Id1-dependent proliferative angiogenesis reconstitutes liver mass. Therapeutic co-transplantation of inductive VEGFR2+Id1+Wnt2+HGF+ LSECs with hepatocytes provides an effective strategy to achieve durable liver regeneration.

Endothelial-Derived Angiocrine Signals Induce and Sustain Regenerative Lung Alveolarization

To identify pathways involved in adult lung regeneration, we employ a unilateral pneumonectomy (PNX) model that promotes regenerative alveolarization in the remaining intact lung. We show that PNX stimulates pulmonary capillary endothelial cells (PCECs) to produce angiocrine growth factors that induce proliferation of epithelial progenitor cells supporting alveologenesis. Endothelial cells trigger expansion of cocultured epithelial cells, forming three-dimensional angiospheres reminiscent of alveolar-capillary sacs. After PNX, endothelial-specific inducible genetic ablation of Vegfr2 and Fgfr1 in mice inhibits production of MMP14, impairing alveolarization. MMP14 promotes expansion of epithelial progenitor cells by unmasking cryptic EGF-like ectodomains that activate the EGF receptor (EGFR). Consistent with this, neutralization of MMP14 impairs EGFR-mediated alveolar regeneration, whereas administration of EGF or intravascular transplantation of MMP14(+) PCECs into pneumonectomized Vegfr2/Fgfr1-deficient mice restores alveologenesis and lung inspiratory volume and compliance function. VEGFR2 and FGFR1 activation in PCECs therefore increases MMP14-dependent bioavailability of EGFR ligands to initiate and sustain alveologenesis.

Molecular Signatures of Tissue-Specific Microvascular Endothelial Cell Heterogeneity in Organ Maintenance and Regeneration

Microvascular endothelial cells (ECs) within different tissues are endowed with distinct but as yet unrecognized structural, phenotypic, and functional attributes. We devised EC purification, cultivation, profiling, and transplantation models that establish tissue-specific molecular libraries of ECs devoid of lymphatic ECs or parenchymal cells. These libraries identify attributes that confer ECs with their organotypic features. We show that clusters of transcription factors, angiocrine growth factors, adhesion molecules, and chemokines are expressed in unique combinations by ECs of each organ. Furthermore, ECs respond distinctly in tissue regeneration models, hepatectomy, and myeloablation. To test the data set, we developed a transplantation model that employs generic ECs differentiated from embryonic stem cells. Transplanted generic ECs engraft into regenerating tissues and acquire features of organotypic ECs. Collectively, we demonstrate the utility of informational databases of ECs toward uncovering the extravascular and intrinsic signals that define EC heterogeneity. These factors could be exploited therapeutically to engineer tissue-specific ECs for regeneration.

Expansion and maintenance of human embryonic stem cell–derived endothelial cells by TGFβ inhibition is Id1 dependent

Previous efforts to differentiate human embryonic stem cells (hESCs) into endothelial cells have not achieved sustained expansion and stability of vascular cells. To define vasculogenic developmental pathways and enhance differentiation, we used an endothelial cell–specific VE-cadherin promoter driving green fluorescent protein (GFP) (hVPr-GFP) to screen for factors that promote vascular commitment. In phase 1 of our method, inhibition of transforming growth factor (TGF)β at day 7 of differentiation increases hVPr-GFP+ cells by tenfold. In phase 2, TGFβ inhibition maintains the proliferation and vascular identity of purified endothelial cells, resulting in a net 36-fold expansion of endothelial cells in homogenous monolayers, which exhibited a transcriptional profile of Id1highVEGFR2highVE-cadherin+ ephrinB2+. Using an Id1-YFP hESC reporter line, we showed that TGFβ inhibition sustains Id1 expression in hESC-derived endothelial cells and that Id1 is required for increased proliferation and preservation of endothelial cell commitment. Our approach provides a serum-free method for differentiation and long-term maintenance of hESC-derived endothelial cells at a scale relevant to clinical application.

Divergent angiocrine signals from vascular niche balance liver regeneration and fibrosis

Chemical or traumatic damage to the liver is frequently associated with aberrant healing (fibrosis) that overrides liver regeneration. The mechanism by which hepatic niche cells differentially modulate regeneration and fibrosis during liver repair remains to be defined. Hepatic vascular niche predominantly represented by liver sinusoidal endothelial cells deploys paracrine trophogens, known as angiocrine factors, to stimulate regeneration. Nevertheless, it is not known how pro-regenerative angiocrine signals from liver sinusoidal endothelial cells is subverted to promote fibrosis. Here, by combining an inducible endothelial-cell-specific mouse gene deletion strategy and complementary models of acute and chronic liver injury, we show that divergent angiocrine signals from liver sinusoidal endothelial cells stimulate regeneration after immediate injury and provoke fibrosis after chronic insult. The pro-fibrotic transition of vascular niche results from differential expression of stromal-derived factor-1 receptors, CXCR7 and CXCR4 (refs 18, 19, 20, 21), in liver sinusoidal endothelial cells. After acute injury, CXCR7 upregulation in liver sinusoidal endothelial cells acts with CXCR4 to induce transcription factor Id1, deploying pro-regenerative angiocrine factors and triggering regeneration. Inducible deletion of Cxcr7 in sinusoidal endothelial cells (Cxcr7iΔEC/iΔEC) from the adult mouse liver impaired liver regeneration by diminishing Id1-mediated production of angiocrine factors. By contrast, after chronic injury inflicted by iterative hepatotoxin (carbon tetrachloride) injection and bile duct ligation, constitutive FGFR1 signalling in liver sinusoidal endothelial cells counterbalanced CXCR7-dependent pro-regenerative response and augmented CXCR4 expression. This predominance of CXCR4 over CXCR7 expression shifted angiocrine response of liver sinusoidal endothelial cells, stimulating proliferation of desmin+ hepatic stellate-like cells and enforcing a pro-fibrotic vascular niche. Endothelial-cell-specific ablation of either Fgfr1 (Fgfr1iΔEC/iΔEC) or Cxcr4 (Cxcr4iΔEC/iΔEC) in mice restored the pro-regenerative pathway and prevented FGFR1-mediated maladaptive subversion of angiocrine factors. Similarly, selective CXCR7 activation in liver sinusoidal endothelial cells abrogated fibrogenesis. Thus, we demonstrate that in response to liver injury, differential recruitment of pro-regenerative CXCR7-Id1 versus pro-fibrotic FGFR1–CXCR4 angiocrine pathways in vascular niche balances regeneration and fibrosis. These results provide a therapeutic roadmap to achieve hepatic regeneration without provoking fibrosis.

Continuous delivery of stromal cell-derived factor-1 from alginate scaffolds accelerates wound healing.

Proper wound diagnosis and management is an increasingly important clinical challenge and is a large and growing unmet need. Pressure ulcers, hard-to-heal wounds, and problematic surgical incisions are emerging at increasing frequencies. At present, the wound-healing industry is experiencing a paradigm shift towards innovative treatments that exploit nanotechnology, biomaterials, and biologics. Our study utilized an alginate hydrogel patch to deliver stromal cell-derived factor-1 (SDF-1), a naturally occurring chemokine that is rapidly overexpressed in response to tissue injury, to assess the potential effects SDF-1 therapy on wound closure rates and scar formation. Alginate patches were loaded with either purified recombinant human SDF-1 protein or plasmid expressing SDF-1 and the kinetics of SDF-1 release were measured both in vitro and in vivo in mice. Our studies demonstrate that although SDF-1 plasmid- and protein-loaded patches were able to release therapeutic product over hours to days, SDF-1 protein was released faster (in vivo Kd 0.55 days) than SDF-1 plasmid (in vivo Kd 3.67 days). We hypothesized that chronic SDF-1 delivery would be more effective in accelerating the rate of dermal wound closure in Yorkshire pigs with acute surgical wounds, a model that closely mimics human wound healing. Wounds treated with SDF-1 protein (n = 10) and plasmid (n = 6) loaded patches healed faster than sham (n = 4) or control (n = 4). At day 9, SDF-1-treated wounds significantly accelerated wound closure (55.0 ± 14.3% healed) compared to nontreated controls (8.2 ± 6.0%, p < 0.05). Furthermore, 38% of SDF-1-treated wounds were fully healed at day 9 (vs. none in controls) with very little evidence of scarring. These data suggest that patch-mediated SDF-1 delivery may ultimately provide a novel therapy for accelerating healing and reducing scarring in clinical wounds.

Generation of a functional and durable vascular niche by the adenoviral E4ORF1 gene

Vascular cells contribute to organogenesis and tumorigenesis by producing unknown factors. Primary endothelial cells (PECs) provide an instructive platform for identifying factors that support stem cell and tumor homeostasis. However, long-term maintenance of PECs requires stimulation with cytokines and serum, resulting in loss of their angiogenic properties. To circumvent this hurdle, we have discovered that the adenoviral E4ORF1 gene product maintains long-term survival and facilitates organ-specific purification of PECs, while preserving their vascular repertoire for months, in serum/cytokine-free cultures. Lentiviral introduction of E4ORF1 into human PECs (E4ORF1+ ECs) increased the long-term survival of these cells in serum/cytokine-free conditions, while preserving their in vivo angiogenic potential for tubulogenesis and sprouting. Although E4ORF1, in the absence of mitogenic signals, does not induce proliferation of ECs, stimulation with VEGF-A and/or FGF-2 induced expansion of E4ORF1+ ECs in a contact-inhibited manner. Indeed, VEGF-A-induced phospho MAPK activation of E4ORF1+ ECs is comparable with that of naive PECs, suggesting that the VEGF receptors remain functional upon E4ORF1 introduction. E4ORF1+ ECs inoculated in implanted Matrigel plugs formed functional, patent, humanized microvessels that connected to the murine circulation. E4ORF1+ ECs also incorporated into neo-vessels of human tumor xenotransplants and supported serum/cytokine-free expansion of leukemic and embryonal carcinoma cells. E4ORF1 augments survival of PECs in part by maintaining FGF-2/FGF-R1 signaling and through tonic Ser-473 phosphorylation of Akt, thereby activating the mTOR and NF-κB pathways. Therefore, E4ORF1+ ECs establish an Akt-dependent durable vascular niche not only for expanding stem and tumor cells but also for interrogating the roles of vascular cells in regulating organ-specific vascularization and tumor neo-angiogenesis.

An evanescent wave biosensor. II. Fluorescent signal acquisition from tapered fiber optic probes

For pt.I see ibid., vol.41, no.6, p.578-84 (1994). A biosensor was developed using antibodies, fluorescence and the evanescent wave to detect antigen binding at the surface of an optical fiber. Cladding was removed from the core along the distal end of a step-index optical fiber, and recognition antibodies were immobilized on the declad core to form the probe sensing region. Immersing the declad probe in aqueous solution creates a V-number mismatch between the immersed probe and the clad fiber. Probes created with reduced sensing region radius exhibited improved response by decreasing the V-number mismatch. Tapering the radius of this region has further improved probe response. Ray tracing analysis of the tapered probe demonstrated that the evanescent wave penetration depth increases along the length of the taper. Experiments correlating position of refraction along the taper with launch angle at the proximal end were realized in the ray tracing model. An evanescent wave immunoassay was performed with a series of the tapered fiber probes, each tapered from the fiber core radius (100 /spl mu/m) to different end radii. An end radius of 29 /spl mu/m was found to produce maximal signal from the tapered probe. Factors leading to the determination of the optimized probe are discussed.<<ETX>>

Trace detection of explosives using a membrane-based displacement immunoassay

A compact membrane-based displacement immunoassay has been designed for rapid detection of explosive compounds 2,4,6-trinitrotoluene (TNT) and hexahydro-1,3,5-trinitro-1,3,5-triazine (RDX) at high femtomole levels. The system consists of activated porous membranes, onto which either TNT or RDX antibodies are immobilized, that are inserted into microreactor columns, incorporated into a flow system. The assay is prepared by saturating the immobilized antibody binding sites with labeled antigen. Target analyte is introduced upstream of the microreactor, while the displacement of labeled antigen is monitored downstream using a fluorometer. The concentration of displaced labeled antigen detected is proportional to the concentration of the target analyte introduced into the system. This system provides a reusable and reagentless sensor, suitable for continuous monitoring of explosives, with an operating lifetime of over 50 positive samples. Multiple assays were performed in approximately 5 min at different flow rates, using membranes saturated with varying antibody concentrations. The membrane-based format exhibited a detection limit of approximately 450 fmol for TNT and RDX (100 microl of 1 ng/ml solution) in laboratory samples.

Targeting of the pulmonary capillary vascular niche promotes lung alveolar repair and ameliorates fibrosis

Although the lung can undergo self-repair after injury, fibrosis in chronically injured or diseased lungs can occur at the expense of regeneration. Here we study how a hematopoietic-vascular niche regulates alveolar repair and lung fibrosis. Using intratracheal injection of bleomycin or hydrochloric acid in mice, we show that repetitive lung injury activates pulmonary capillary endothelial cells (PCECs) and perivascular macrophages, impeding alveolar repair and promoting fibrosis. Whereas the chemokine receptor CXCR7, expressed on PCECs, acts to prevent epithelial damage and ameliorate fibrosis after a single round of treatment with bleomycin or hydrochloric acid, repeated injury leads to suppression of CXCR7 expression and recruitment of vascular endothelial growth factor receptor 1 (VEGFR1)-expressing perivascular macrophages. This recruitment stimulates Wnt/β-catenin–dependent persistent upregulation of the Notch ligand Jagged1 (encoded by Jag1) in PCECs, which in turn stimulates exuberant Notch signaling in perivascular fibroblasts and enhances fibrosis. Administration of a CXCR7 agonist or PCEC-targeted Jag1 shRNA after lung injury promotes alveolar repair and reduces fibrosis. Thus, targeting of a maladapted hematopoietic-vascular niche, in which macrophages, PCECs and perivascular fibroblasts interact, may help to develop therapy to spur lung regeneration and alleviate fibrosis.