The matricellular protein SPARC is expressed at high levels in cells that participate in tissue remodeling and is thought to regulate mesangial cell proliferation and extracellular matrix production in the kidney glomerulus in a rat model of glomerulonephritis (Pichler, R. H., Bassuk, J. A., Hugo, C., Reed, M. J., Eng, E., Gordon, K. L., Pippin, J., Alpers, C. E., Couser, W. G., Sage, E. H., and Johnson, R. J. (1997) Am. J. Pathol. 148, 1153-1167). A potential mechanism by which SPARC controls both cell cycle and matrix production has been attributed to its regulation of a pleiotropic growth factor. In this study we used primary mesangial cell cultures from wild-type mice and from mice with a targeted disruption of the SPARC gene. SPARC-null cells displayed diminished expression of collagen type I mRNA and protein, relative to wild-type cells, by the criteria of immunocytochemistry, immunoblotting, and the reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction. The SPARC-null cells also showed significantly decreased steady-state levels of transforming growth factor-␤1 (TGF-␤1) mRNA and secreted TGF-␤1 protein. Addition of recombinant SPARC to SPARC-null cells restored the expression of collagen type I mRNA to 70% and TGF-␤1 mRNA to 100% of wildtype levels. We conclude that SPARC regulates the expression of collagen type I and TGF-␤1 in kidney mesangial cells. Since increased mitosis and matrix deposition by mesangial cells are characteristics of glomerulopathies, we propose that SPARC is one of the factors that maintains the balance between cell proliferation and matrix production in the glomerulus.

SPARC, a matricellular protein that affects cellular adhesion and proliferation, is produced in remodeling tissue and in pathologies involving fibrosis and angiogenesis. In this study we have asked whether peptides generated from cleavage of SPARC in the extracellular milieu can regulate angiogenesis. Matrix metalloproteinase (MMP)-3, but not MMP-1 or 9, showed significant activity toward SPARC. Limited digestion of recombinant human (rhu)SPARC with purified catalytic domain of rhuMMP-3 produced three major fragments, which were sequenced after purification by HPLC. Three synthetic peptides (Z-1, Z-2, and Z-3) representing motifs from each fragment were tested in distinct assays of angiogenesis. Peptide Z-1 (3.9 kDa, containing a Cu 2؉ -binding sequence KHGK) exhibited a biphasic effect on [ 3 H]thymidine incorporation by cultured endothelial cells and stimulated vascular growth in the chick chorioallantoic membrane (CAM). In contrast, peptides Z-2 (6.1 kDa, containing Ca 2؉ -binding EF hand-1) and Z-3 (2.2 kDa, containing neither Cu 2؉ -binding motifs nor EF hands), inhibited cell proliferation in a concentration-dependent manner and exhibited no effects on vessel growth in the CAM. Reciprocal results were obtained in a migration assay in native collagen gels: peptide Z-1 was ineffective over a range of concentrations, whereas Z-2 or Z-3 stimulated cell migration. Therefore, proteolysis of SPARC by MMP-3 produced peptides that regulate endothelial cell proliferation and/or migration in vitro in a mutually exclusive manner. One of these peptides containing KHGK also demonstrated a concentration-dependent effect on angiogenesis.

Fibroblast growth factor (FGF)-10 plays an important role in regulating growth, differentiation, and repair of the urothelium. This process occurs through a paracrine cascade originating in the mesenchyme (lamina propria) and targeting the epithelium (urothelium). In situ hybridization analysis demonstrated that (i) fibroblasts of the human lamina propria were the cell type that synthesized FGF-10 RNA and (ii) the FGF-10 gene is located at the 5p12-p13 locus of chromosome 5. Recombinant (r) preparations of human FGF-10 were found to induce proliferation of human urothelial cells in vitro and of transitional epithelium of wild-type and FGF7-null mice in vivo. Mechanistic studies with human cells indicated two modes of FGF-10 action: (i) translocation of rFGF-10 into urothelial cell nuclei and (ii) a signaling cascade that begins with the heparin-dependent phosphorylation of tyrosine residues of surface transmembrane receptors. The normal urothelial phenotype, that of quiescence, is proposed to be typified by negligible levels of FGF-10. During proliferative phases, levels of FGF-10 rise at the urothelial cell surface and/or within urothelial cell nuclei. An understanding of how FGF-10 works in conjunction with these other processes will lead to better management of many diseases of the bladder and urinary tract.

Heparin-binding forms of vitronectin, a multifunctional adhesive glycoprotein, are associated with the extracellular matrix (ECM) at different locations in the body and serve to promote cell adhesion and the regulation of pericellular proteolysis at sites of angiogenesis. In the present study we characterized the interactions of vitronectin with the counter-adhesive protein osteonectin (also termed SPARC or BM40). Osteonectin and vitronectin were both found associated with the ECM of cultured endothelial cells and were localized in vessel wall sections of kidney tissue. In vitro, the heparin-binding multimeric isoform of vitronectin bound to immobilized osteonectin in a saturable manner with half-maximal binding at 30-40 nM. Preincubation of plasma vitronectin with plasminogen activator inhibitor 1 (PAI-1), which provoked multimer formation, induced the binding of vitronectin to osteonectin. Binding was optimal at physiological ionic strength, and binary complexes were stabilized by tissue transglutaminase-mediated cross-linking. In a concentration-dependent fashion, PAI-1, CaCl2, heparin and heparan sulphate, but not other glycosaminoglycans, interfered with the binding of vitronectin to osteonectin. Using vitronectin-derived synthetic peptides as well as mutant forms of recombinant osteonectin, we found that the heparin-binding region of vitronectin interacted with the C-terminal region of osteonectin that contains a high-affinity Ca2+-binding site with counter-adhesive properties. Adhesion of cultured endothelial cells was partly abrogated by osteonectin and was correspondingly reversed by vitronectin in a concentration-dependent manner. These results indicate that specific interactions between vitronectin and osteonectin modulate cell adhesion and might thereby regulate endothelial cell function during angiogenesis.

Secreted protein acidic and rich in cysteine (SPARC) is a matricellular protein that inhibits cellular adhesion and proliferation. In this study, we report the detection of SPARC in the interphase nuclei of embryonic chicken cells in vivo. Differential partitioning of SPARC was also noted in the cytoplasm of these cells during discrete stages of M-phase: cells in metaphase and anaphase exhibited strong cytoplasmic immunoreactivity, whereas cells in telophase were devoid of labeling. Immunocytochemical analysis of embryonic chicken cells in vitro likewise showed the presence of SPARC in the nucleus. Furthermore, elution of soluble proteins and DNA from these cells indicated that SPARC might be a component of the nuclear matrix. We subsequently examined cultured bovine aortic endothelial cells, which initially appeared to express SPARC only in the cytoplasm. However, after elution of soluble proteins and chromatin, we also detected SPARC in the nuclear matrix of these cells. Embryonic chicken cells incubated with recombinant SPARC were seen to take up the protein and to translocate it to the nucleus progressively over a period of 17 h. These observations provide new information about SPARC, generally recognized as a secreted glycoprotein that mediates interactions between cells and components of the extracellular matrix. The evidence presented in this study indicates that SPARC might subserve analogous functions in the nuclear matrix.