Reactive oxygen species (ROS), in particular, H2O2, is essential for full activation of VEGF receptor2 (VEGFR2) signaling involved in endothelial cell (EC) proliferation and migration. Extracellular superoxide dismutase (ecSOD) is a major secreted extracellular enzyme that catalyzes the dismutation of superoxide to H2O2, and anchors to EC surface through heparin-binding domain (HBD). Mice lacking ecSOD show impaired postnatal angiogenesis. However, it is unknown whether ecSOD-derived H2O2 regulates VEGF signaling. Here we show that gene transfer of ecSOD, but not ecSOD lacking HBD (ecSOD-ΔHBD), increases H2O2 levels in adductor muscle of mice, and promotes angiogenesis after hindlimb ischemia. Mice lacking ecSOD show reduction of H2O2 in non-ischemic and ischemic limbs. In vitro, overexpression of ecSOD, but not ecSOD-ΔHBD, in cultured medium in ECs enhances VEGF-induced tyrosine phosphorylation of VEGFR2 (VEGFR2-pY), which is prevented by short-term pretreatment with catalase that scavenges extracellular H2O2. Either exogenous H2O2 (<500 µM), which is diffusible, or nitric oxide donor has no effect on VEGF-induced VEGFR2-pY. These suggest that ecSOD binding to ECs via HBD is required for localized generation of extracellular H2O2 to regulate VEGFR2-pY. Mechanistically, VEGF-induced VEGFR2-pY in caveolae/lipid rafts, but non-lipid rafts, is enhanced by ecSOD, which localizes at lipid rafts via HBD. One of the targets of ROS is protein tyrosine phosphatases (PTPs). ecSOD induces oxidation and inactivation of both PTP1B and DEP1, which negatively regulates VEGFR2-pY, in caveolae/lipid rafts, but not non-lipid rafts. Disruption of caveolae/lipid rafts, or PTPs inhibitor orthovanadate, or siRNAs for PTP1B and DEP1 enhances VEGF-induced VEGFR2-pY, which prevents ecSOD-induced effect. Functionally, ecSOD promotes VEGF-stimulated EC migration and proliferation. In summary, extracellular H2O2 generated by ecSOD localized at caveolae/lipid rafts via HBD promotes VEGFR2 signaling via oxidative inactivation of PTPs in these microdomains. Thus, ecSOD is a potential therapeutic target for angiogenesis-dependent cardiovascular diseases.

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Type 2 diabetes is preceded by the development of insulin resistance, in which the action of insulin is impaired, largely in skeletal muscles. Caveolin-3 (Cav3) is a muscle-specific subtype of caveolin, an example of a scaffolding protein found within membranes. Cav is also known as growth signal inhibitor, although it was recently demonstrated that the genetic disruption of Cav3 did not augment growth in mice. We found, however, that the lack of Cav3 led to the development of insulin resistance, as exemplified by decreased glucose uptake in skeletal muscles, impaired glucose tolerance test performance, and increases in serum lipids. Such impairments were markedly augmented in the presence of streptozotocin, a pancreatic ␤ cell toxin, suggesting that the mice were susceptible to severe diabetes in the presence of an additional risk factor. Insulinstimulated activation of insulin receptors and downstream molecules, such as IRS-1 and Akt, was attenuated in the skeletal muscles of Cav3 null mice, but not in the liver, without affecting protein expression or subcellular localization. Genetic transfer of Cav3 by needle injection restored insulin signaling in skeletal muscles. Our findings suggest that Cav3 is an enhancer of insulin signaling in skeletal muscles but does not act as a scaffolding molecule for insulin receptors. Diabetes mellitus comprises a group of common metabolic disorders that share the phenotype of hyperglycemia (1). In particular, adult-onset diabetes, or type 2 diabetes, is a heterogeneous group of disorders usually characterized by varying degrees of insulin resistance and increased blood glucose concentrations. Insulin binding to insulin receptors (IR) evokes a cascade of phosphorylation events, as commonly seen in other growth factor signaling, beginning with the autophosphorylation of IR in multiple tyrosyl residues, followed by downstream signaling events (2). The combined actions of these events mediate the biological effects of insulin, leading to increased glucose uptake.Caveolin (Cav) is a major protein component of caveolae, flask-shaped plasma membrane invaginations found in myocytes, endothelial cells, fibroblasts, and adipocytes (for review, see ref.3). Numerous studies have indicated that Cav works as a scaffolding molecule; it binds directly to various receptors and their effector molecules and anchors these molecules to the caveolae. More important, Cav inhibits the function of these molecules. Cav-1 (Cav1)-mediated inhibition, by the use of a short stretch of the amino terminus domain of Cav (or the Cav scaffolding domain peptide), has been demonstrated with various kinases involved in cellular growth, such as receptor tyrosine kinases, e.g., epidermal growth factor-R (4) or platelet-derived growth factor-R (5), as well as protein kinase C (6) or Src (7). These studies have demonstrated that the Cav1 peptide directly bound to these molecules and inhibited their activity. Accordingly, it is now believed that Cav1 is an inhibitor of cellular growth signal (8-10).Cav3 is the newest...

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p66Shc, a longevity adaptor protein, is demonstrated as a key regulator of reactive oxygen species (ROS) metabolism involved in aging and cardiovascular diseases. Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) stimulates endothelial cell (EC) migration and proliferation primarily through the VEGF receptor-2 (VEGFR2). We have shown that ROS derived from Rac1-dependent NADPH oxidase are involved in VEGFR2 autophosphorylation and angiogenic-related responses in ECs. However, a role of p66Shc in VEGF signaling and physiological responses in ECs is unknown. Here we show that VEGF promotes p66Shc phosphorylation at Ser36 through the JNK/ERK or PKC pathway as well as Rac1 binding to a nonphosphorylated form of p66Shc in ECs. Depletion of endogenous p66Shc with short interfering RNA inhibits VEGF-induced Rac1 activity and ROS production. Fractionation of caveolin-enriched lipid raft demonstrates that p66Shc plays a critical role in VEGFR2 phosphorylation in caveolae/lipid rafts as well as downstream p38MAP kinase activation. This in turn stimulates VEGF-induced EC migration, proliferation, and capillary-like tube formation. These studies uncover a novel role of p66Shc as a positive regulator for ROS-dependent VEGFR2 signaling linked to angiogenesis in ECs and suggest p66Shc as a potential therapeutic target for various angiogenesis-dependent diseases.

Neuronal nicotinic acetylcholine receptors (nAChRs) are made of multiple subunits with diversified functions. The nAChR α7-subunit has a property of high Ca2+ permeability and may have specific functions and localization within the plasma membrane as a signal transduction molecule. In PC-12 cells, fractionation by sucrose gradient centrifugation revealed that nAChRα7 existed in low-density, cholesterol-enriched plasma membrane microdomains known as lipid rafts where flotillin also exists. In contrast, nAChR α5- and β2-subunits were located in high-density fractions, out of the lipid rafts. Type 6 adenylyl cyclase (AC6), a calcium-inhibitable isoform, was also found in lipid rafts and was coimmunoprecipitated with nAChRα7. Cholesterol depletion from plasma membranes with methyl-β-cyclodextrin redistributed nAChRα7 and AC6 diffusely within plasma membranes. Nicotine stimulation reduced forskolin-stimulated AC activity by 35%, and this inhibition was negated by either treatment with α-bungarotoxin, a specific antagonist of nAChRα7, or cholesterol depletion from plasma membranes. The effect of cholesterol depletion was negated by the addition of cholesterol. These data suggest that nAChRα7 has a specific membrane localization relative to other nAChR subunits and that lipid rafts are necessary to localize nAChRα7 with AC within plasma membranes. In addition, nAChRα7 may regulate the AC activity via Ca2+ within lipid rafts.

BackgroundNeovascularization is an important repair mechanism in response to ischemic injury and is dependent on inflammation, angiogenesis and reactive oxygen species (ROS). IQGAP1, an actin-binding scaffold protein, is a key regulator for actin cytoskeleton and motility. We previously demonstrated that IQGAP1 mediates vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF)-induced ROS production and migration of cultured endothelial cells (ECs); however, its role in post-ischemic neovascularization is unknown.Methodology/Principal FindingsIschemia was induced by left femoral artery ligation, which resulted in increased IQGAP1 expression in Mac3+ macrophages and CD31+ capillary-like ECs in ischemic legs. Mice lacking IQGAP1 exhibited a significant reduction in the post-ischemic neovascularization as evaluated by laser Doppler blood flow, capillary density and α-actin positive arterioles. Furthermore, IQGAP1−/− mice showed a decrease in macrophage infiltration and ROS production in ischemic muscles, leading to impaired muscle regeneration and increased necrosis and fibrosis. The numbers of bone marrow (BM)-derived cells in the peripheral blood were not affected in these knockout mice. BM transplantation revealed that IQGAP1 expressed in both BM-derived cells and tissue resident cells, such as ECs, is required for post-ischemic neovascularization. Moreover, thioglycollate-induced peritoneal macrophage recruitment and ROS production were inhibited in IQGAP1−/− mice. In vitro, IQGAP1−/− BM-derived macrophages showed inhibition of migration and adhesion capacity, which may explain the defective macrophage recruitment into the ischemic tissue in IQGAP1−/− mice.Conclusions/SignificanceIQGAP1 plays a key role in post-ischemic neovascularization by regulating, not only, ECs-mediated angiogenesis but also macrophage infiltration as well as ROS production. Thus, IQGAP1 is a potential therapeutic target for inflammation- and angiogenesis-dependent ischemic cardiovascular diseases.

UMIN000003878.