Effect of sinomenine on vascular smooth muscle cell dedifferentiation and neointima formation after vascular injury in mice.

Sinomenine, a pure alkaloid extract from Sinomenium acutum, has anti-inflammatory and immunoregulatory functions. This study investigated the efficiency and the signalling pathways involved in the effect of sinomenine on vascular smooth muscle cell (VSMC) dedifferentiation in response to platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF)-BB stimulation and vascular injury. VSMCs were isolated from rat aorta and preincubated with sinomenine before being stimulated with PDGF-BB. WST and BrdU incorporation assays were used to evaluate VSMC proliferation. Flow cytometric analysis was performed for testing the cell cycle progression. The cell migration of VSMCs were analysed using a Transwell system. The expression of VSMC specific genes and signalling proteins were tested by Western blot. For the animal study, C57/BL6 mice were fed either normal rodent chow diets or sinomenine chow diets that supplemented with 0.09 % sinomenine (w/w) in the normal chows for 14 days before carotid artery wire injury. PDGF-BB activated the dedifferentiation of VSMCs characterised by decreased expression of SMA, Smoothelin and SM22α. However, sinomenine treatment preserved the dedifferentiation in response to PDGF-BB. The activations of mitogen-activated protein kinase extracellular signal-regulated kinases, Akt, GSK3ß and STAT3 induced by PDGF-BB were also inhibited in sinomenine-treated VSMCs. In vivo evidence with wire-injured mice exhibited a reduction in neointimal area and an increase in smooth muscle-specific gene expression in the sinomenine-treated group. In this study, we found that sinomenine-suppressed VSMC phenotype switching induced by PDGF-BB in vitro and neointimal formation in vivo. Therefore, sinomenine is a potential candidate to be used in the treatment of vascular proliferative disease.

Indole-3-carbinol blocks platelet-derived growth factor-stimulated vascular smooth muscle cell function and reduces neointima formation in vivo.

The purpose of this study was to determine the effect and associated cell signaling mechanisms of indole-3-carbinol (I3C) on platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF)-BB-induced proliferation and migration of cultured vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs) and neointima formation in a carotid injury model. Our data demonstrated that I3C inhibited PDGF-BB-induced proliferation of VSMCs in a dose-dependent manner without causing cell cytotoxicity, as assessed by 5-bromo-2'-deoxyuridine incorporation and WST-1 assays. Further studies revealed that the antiproliferative effect of I3C was caused by the arrest of cells in both the G0/G1 and S phases. Moreover, I3C treatment inhibited migration of VSMCs and partly reversed the expression of smooth-muscle-specific contractile markers. We also demonstrated that I3C-induced growth inhibition was associated with an inhibition of the expression of cyclin D1 and cyclin-dependent kinase 4/6, as well as an increase in p27(Kip1) levels in PDGF-stimulated VSMCs. These beneficial effects of I3C on VSMCs appeared to be at least partly mediated by the inhibition of Akt and the subsequent activation of glycogen synthase kinase (GSK) 3ß. Furthermore, using a mouse carotid artery injury model, we found that treatment with 150 mg/kg I3C resulted in a significant reduction of the neointima/media ratio and cells positive for proliferating cell nuclear antigen. These results demonstrate that I3C can suppress the proliferation and migration of VSMCs and neointima hyperplasia after vascular injury via inhibition of the Akt/GSK3ß pathway and suggest that this might be feasible as part of a therapeutic strategy for vascular proliferative diseases.

Gastrodin inhibits cell proliferation in vascular smooth muscle cells and attenuates neointima formation in vivo.

Vascular smooth muscle cell (VSMC) proliferation plays a critical role in the development of vascular diseases. In the present study, we tested the efficacy and the mechanisms of action of gastrodin, a bioactive component of the Chinese herb Gastrodia elata Bl, in relation to platelet-derived growth factor-BB (PDGF-BB)-dependent cell proliferation and neointima formation after acute vascular injury. Cell experiments were performed with VSMCs isolated from rat aortas. WST and BrdU incorporation assays were used to evaluate VSMC proliferation. Eight-week-old C57BL/6 mice were used for the animal experiments. Gastrodin (150 mg/kg/day) was administered in the animal chow for 14 days, and the mice were subjected to wire injury of the left carotid artery. Our data demonstrated that gastrodin attenuated the VSMC proliferation induced by PDGF-BB, as assessed by WST assay and BrdU incorporation. Gastrodin influenced the S-phase entry of VSMCs and stabilised p27Kip1 expression. In addition, pre-incubation with sinomenine prior to PDGF-BB stimulation led to increased smooth muscle-specific gene expression, thereby inhibiting VSMC dedifferentiation. Gastrodin treatment also reduced the intimal area and the number of PCNA-positive cells. Furthermore, PDGF-BB-induced phosphorylation of ERK1/2, p38 MAPK, Akt and GSK3ß was suppressed by gastrodin. Our results suggest that gastrodin can inhibit VSMC proliferation and attenuate neointimal hyperplasia in response to vascular injury. Furthermore, the ERK1/2, p38 MAPK and Akt/GSK3ß signalling pathways were found to be involved in the effects of gastrodin.

3,3'Diindolylmethane suppresses vascular smooth muscle cell phenotypic modulation and inhibits neointima formation after carotid injury.

BACKGROUND: 3,3'Diindolylmethane (DIM), a natural phytochemical, has shown inhibitory effects on the growth and migration of a variety of cancer cells; however, whether DIM has similar effects on vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs) remains unknown. The purpose of this study was to assess the effects of DIM on the proliferation and migration of cultured VSMCs and neointima formation in a carotid injury model, as well as the related cell signaling mechanisms. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: DIM dose-dependently inhibited the platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF)-BB-induced proliferation of VSMCs without cell cytotoxicity. This inhibition was caused by a G0/G1 phase cell cycle arrest demonstrated by fluorescence-activated cell-sorting analysis. We also showed that DIM-induced growth inhibition was associated with the inhibition of the expression of cyclin D1 and cyclin-dependent kinase (CDK) 4/6 as well as an increase in p27(Kip1) levels in PDGF-stimulated VSMCs. Moreover, DIM was also found to modulate migration of VSMCs and smooth muscle-specific contractile marker expression. Mechanistically, DIM negatively modulated PDGF-BB-induced phosphorylation of PDGF-recptorß (PDGF-Rß) and the activities of downstream signaling molecules including Akt/glycogen synthase kinase(GSK)3ß, extracellular signal-regulated kinase1/2 (ERK1/2), and signal transducers and activators of transcription 3 (STAT3). Our in vivo studies using a mouse carotid arterial injury model revealed that treatment with 150 mg/kg DIM resulted in significant reduction of the neointima/media ratio and proliferating cell nuclear antigen (PCNA)-positive cells, without affecting apoptosis of vascular cells and reendothelialization. Infiltration of inflammatory cells was also inhibited by DIM administration. CONCLUSION: These results demonstrate that DIM can suppress the phenotypic modulation of VSMCs and neointima hyperplasia after vascular injury. These beneficial effects on VSMCs were at least partly mediated by the inhibition of PDGF-Rß and the activities of downstream signaling pathways. The results suggest that DIM has the potential to be a candidate for the prevention of restenosis.