Human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) is associated with the acceleration of a number of vascular diseases such as atherosclerosis, restenosis, and transplant vascular sclerosis (TVS). All of these diseases are the result of either mechanical or immune-mediated injury followed by inflammation and subsequent smooth muscle cell (SMC) migration from the vessel media to the intima and proliferation that culminates in vessel narrowing. A number of epidemiological and animal studies have demonstrated that CMV significantly accelerates TVS and chronic rejection (CR) in solid organ allografts. In addition, treatment of human recipients and animals alike with the antiviral drug ganciclovir results in prolonged survival of the allograft indicating that CMV replication is a requirement for acceleration of disease. However, although virus persists in the allograft throughout the course of disease, the number of directly infected cells does not account for the global effects that the virus has on the acceleration of TVS and CR. Recent investigations of up-and down-regulated cellular genes in infected allografts in comparison to native heart has demonstrated that Rat-CMV (RCMV) up-regulates genes involved in wound healing (WH) and angiogenesis (AG). Consistent with this result, we have found that supernatants from HCMV infected cells (HCMV secretome) induce WH and AG using in vitro models. Taken together these findings suggest that one mechanism for HCMV acceleration of TVS is mediated through induction of secreted cytokines and growth factors from virus-infected cells that promote WH and AG in the allograft, resulting in the acceleration of TVS. We review here the ability of CMV infection to alter the local environment by producing cellular factors that act in a paracrine fashion to enhance WH and AG processes associated with the development of vascular disease, which accelerates chronic allograft rejection.

Human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) is implicated in the acceleration of a number of vascular diseases including transplant vascular sclerosis (TVS), the lesion associated with chronic rejection (CR) of solid organ transplants. Although the virus persists in the allograft throughout the course of disease, few cells are directly infected by CMV. This observation is in contrast to the global effects that CMV has on the acceleration of TVS/CR, suggesting that CMV infection indirectly promotes the vascular disease process. Recent transcriptome analysis of CMV-infected heart allografts indicates that the virus induces cytokines and growth factors associated with angiogenesis (AG) and wound healing (WH), suggesting that CMV may accelerate TVS/CR through the induction and secretion of AG/WH factors from infected cells. We analyzed virus-free supernatants from HCMV-infected cells (HCMV secretomes) for growth factors, by mass spectrometry and immunoassays, and found that the HCMV secretome contains over 1,000 cellular proteins, many of which are involved in AG/WH. Importantly, functional assays demonstrated that CMV but not herpes simplex virus secretomes not only induce AG/WH but also promote neovessel stabilization and endothelial cell survival for 2 weeks. These findings suggest that CMV acceleration of TVS occurs through virus-induced growth factors and cytokines in the CMV secretome.Numerous epidemiological and animal studies link human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) to the acceleration of vascular diseases including arterial restenosis, atherosclerosis, and transplant vascular sclerosis (TVS) (23,24,37). Recent advances in transplantation have significantly impacted short-term allograft and patient survival; however, long-term graft survival has not improved, due largely to chronic rejection (CR). The prevalence of CR is a concern, since retransplantation is the sole effective therapy. TVS represents the hallmark of CR in vascularized solid organ transplants, and HCMV infection nearly doubles the 5-year rate of cardiac graft failure due to accelerated TVS (11). In heart transplant recipients, ganciclovir, a potent inhibitor of CMV replication, delays the time to allograft rejection (25, 44). A higher incidence of viral DNA in the explant vascular intima from patients with cardiac allograft TVS than in explants without vasculopathy further underscores the influence of HCMV on CR development (47). In kidney transplant patients, the presence of HCMV infection, whether asymptomatic or displaying overt symptoms, negatively impacts allograft survival (9). The role of HCMV in TVS/CR development is clear; however, the mechanisms involved in this process remain illusive for the following reasons: HCMV disease etiology is multifactorial; HCMV is ubiquitous throughout the human population; HCMV infection is lifelong and infects all of the cell types involved in TVS, including smooth muscle cells (SMC), endothelial cells (EC), and macrophages; and HCMV evades the immune system by remaining latent, and clinically silent reactivation is diffic...

Human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) accelerates transplant vascular sclerosis (TVS), a consequence of angiogenesis (AG) and wound repair (WR). While HCMV can be localized to TVS lesions, the low number of infected cells suggests a global effect on target tissues. We used microarray analysis followed by real-time-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) in an RCMV-accelerated TVS rat cardiac transplant model to determine whether CMV activates host WR and AG factors. Dysregulated cellular genes in allografts from RCMV-infected recipients were compared to those from uninfected recipients and native hearts. We demonstrated that RCMV upregulates the genes involved in WR and AG, which was highest during the critical time of TVS acceleration (21-28 days). Using a standard in vitro AG assay, virus and serum-free supernatants collected at 48 h postinfection significantly induced endothelial cell (EC) migration, branching and tubule formation compared to supernatants from mock-infected cells. Supernatants from ultraviolet (UV)-inactivated RCMV-infected cells failed to induce AG, indicating that virus replication is required. Upregulation of WR and AG genes occurs during the critical period of CMV-accelerated TVS. Targeting these genes may prevent this process and improve allograft survival.

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