Nucleation By Elastin

Vascular smooth muscle cell phenotypic plasticity and the regulation of vascular calcification

“…Table 1 summarizes the major factors shown to regulate the initiation of calcification in the vessel wall [26–35]. Importantly, VSMC‐derived vesicular structures with similar morphology to MVs have been identified in human arteries [36, 37] particularly in association with atherosclerosis and hypertension [36–40].…”

Cross-Linked Elastin-like Polypeptide Membranes as a Model for Medial Arterial Calcification

“…Tropoelastin is a highly (>75%) nonpolar protein characterized by hydrophobic sequences, or domains, that alternate with lysine-containing cross-linking domains. Hydrophobic domains are rich in glycine, valine, and proline residues that are commonly arranged into repetitive motifs such as Val-Pro-Gly and Pro-Gly-Val-Gly. , Early studies used solubilized ELN obtained from natural tissues through partial hydrolysis to build in vitro models for medial calcification. ,− Among them, some suggested charged groups such as sulfhydryl, amino, and carboxyl groups as nucleation sites for ELN mineralization; − however, Starcher and Urry showed that a solubilized form of ELN in which all the carboxyl and amino groups were blocked provided an excellent matrix for calcification in vitro . This is consistent with the proposal that neutral binding sites (i.e., carbonyl groups) on ELN can bind Ca. , Although these studies suggested that Ca ions are adsorbed first on ELN, the results from another study also using solubilized ELN as an in vitro model suggested that the formation of minerals on ELN is initiated via adsorption of inorganic P .…”

Warfarin Causes Rapid Calcification of the Elastic Lamellae in Rat Arteries and Heart Valves

“…[27][28][29][30][31][32] Elastin has also been shown to be a potent and reproducible initiator of calcification in vitro. [33][34][35][36][37][38][39] In vitro calcification of elastin occurs in serum and neutral buffered solutions at physiological concentrations of calcium and phosphate. This finding is in marked contrast to results of most studies on macromolecule-or cell culture-induced calcification, which relied on supraphysiological concentrations of calcium and phosphate or the agent ␤-glycerophosphate to achieve calcification.…”