Inflammation both increases and causes resistance to FGF23 in normal and uremic rats.

Fibroblast growth factor 23 (FGF23) increases phosphorus excretion and decreases calcitriol (1,25(OH)2D) levels. FGF23 increases from early stages of renal failure. We evaluated whether strict control of phosphorus intake in renal failure prevents the increase in FGF23 and to what extent inflammation impairs regulation of FGF23. The study was performed in 5/6 nephrectomized (Nx) Wistar rats fed diets containing 0.2-1.2% phosphorus for 3 or 15 days. FGF23 levels significantly increased in all Nx groups in the short-term (3-day) experiment. However, at 15 days, FGF23 increased in all Nx rats except in those fed 0.2% phosphorus. In a second experiment, Nx rats fed low phosphorus diets (0.2 and 0.4%) for 15 days received daily intraperitoneal lipopolysaccharide (LPS) injections to induce inflammation. In these rats, FGF23 increased despite the low phosphorus diets. Thus, higher FGF23 levels were needed to maintain phosphaturia and normal serum phosphorus values. Renal Klotho expression was preserved in Nx rats on a 0.2% phosphorus diet, reduced on a 0.4% phosphorus diet, and markedly reduced in Nx rats receiving LPS. In ex vivo experiments, high phosphorus and LPS increased nuclear ß-catenin and p65-NFκB and decreased Klotho. Inhibition of inflammation and Wnt signaling activation resulted in decreased FGF23 levels and increased renal Klotho. In conclusion, strict control of phosphorus intake prevented the increase in FGF23 in renal failure, whereas inflammation independently increased FGF23 values. Decreased Klotho may explain the renal resistance to FGF23 in inflammation. These effects are likely mediated by the activation of NFkB and Wnt/ß-catenin signaling.

Dietary magnesium supplementation prevents and reverses vascular and soft tissue calcifications in uremic rats.

Although magnesium has been shown to prevent vascular calcification in vitro, controlled in vivo studies in uremic animal models are limited. To determine whether dietary magnesium supplementation protects against the development of vascular calcification, 5/6 nephrectomized Wistar rats were fed diets with different magnesium content increasing from 0.1 to 1.1%. In one study we analyzed bone specimens from rats fed 0.1%, 0.3%, and 0.6% magnesium diets, and in another study we evaluated the effect of intraperitoneal magnesium on vascular calcification in 5/6 nephrectomized rats. The effects of magnesium on established vascular calcification were also evaluated in uremic rats fed on diets with either normal (0.1%) or moderately increased magnesium (0.6%) content. The increase in dietary magnesium resulted in a marked reduction in vascular calcification, together with improved mineral metabolism and renal function. Moderately elevated dietary magnesium (0.3%), but not high dietary magnesium (0.6%), improved bone homeostasis as compared to basal dietary magnesium (0.1%). Results of our study also suggested that the protective effect of magnesium on vascular calcification was not limited to its action as an intestinal phosphate binder since magnesium administered intraperitoneally also decreased vascular calcification. Oral magnesium supplementation also reduced blood pressure in uremic rats, and in vitro medium magnesium decreased BMP-2 and p65-NF-κB in TNF-α-treated human umbilical vein endothelial cells. Finally, in uremic rats with established vascular calcification, increasing dietary magnesium from 0.1% magnesium to 0.6% reduced the mortality rate from 52% to 28%, which was associated with reduced vascular calcification. Thus, increasing dietary magnesium reduced both vascular calcification and mortality in uremic rats.

Magnesium Chloride promotes Osteogenesis through Notch signaling activation and expansion of Mesenchymal Stem Cells.

Mesenchymal stem cells (MSC) are osteoblasts progenitors and a variety of studies suggest that they may play an important role for the health in the field of bone regeneration. Magnesium supplementation is gaining importance as adjuvant treatment to improve osteogenesis, although the mechanisms involving this process are not well understood. The objective of this study was to investigate the effects of magnesium on MSC differentiation. Here we show that in rat bone marrow MSC, magnesium chloride increases MSC proliferation in a dose-dependent manner promoting osteogenic differentiation and mineralization. These effects are reduced by 2-APB administration, an inhibitor of magnesium channel TRPM7. Of note, magnesium supplementation did not increase the canonical Wnt/ß-catenin pathway, although it promoted the activation of Notch1 signaling, which was also decreased by addition of 2-APB. Electron microscopy showed higher proliferation, organization and maturation of osteoblasts in bone decellularized scaffolds after magnesium addition. In summary, our results demonstrate that magnesium chloride enhances MSC proliferation by Notch1 signaling activation and induces osteogenic differentiation, shedding light on the understanding of the role of magnesium during bone regeneration.

Procaine Inhibits Osteo/Odontogenesis through Wnt/ß-Catenin Inactivation.

INTRODUCTION: Periodontitis is a complex pathology characterized by the loss of alveolar bone. The causes and the mechanisms that promote this bone resorption still remain unknown. The knowledge of the critical regulators involved in the alteration of alveolar bone homeostasis is of great importance for developing molecular therapies. Procaine is an anesthetic drug with demethylant properties, mainly used by dentists in oral surgeries. The inhibitor role of Wnt signaling of procaine was described in vitro in colon cancer cells. METHODS: In this work we evaluated the role of procaine (1 uM) in osteo/odontogenesis of rat bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells. Similarly, the mechanisms whereby procaine achieves these effects were also studied. RESULTS: Procaine administration led to a drastic decrease of calcium content, alkaline phosphatase activity, alizarin red staining and an increase in the expression of Matrix Gla Protein. With respect to osteo/odontogenic markers, procaine decreased early and mature osteo/odontogenic markers. In parallel, procaine inhibited canonical Wnt/ß-catenin pathway, observing a loss of nuclear ß-catenin, a decrease in Lrp5 and Frizzled 3, a significant increase of sclerostin and Gsk3ß and an increase of phosphorylated ß-catenin. The combination of osteo/odontogenic stimuli and Lithium Chloride decreased mRNA expression of Gsk3ß, recovered by Procaine. Furthermore it was proved that Procaine alone dose dependently increases the expression of Gsk3ß and ß-catenin phosphorylation. These effects of procaine were also observed on mature osteoblast. Interestingly, at this concentration of procaine no demethylant effects were observed. CONCLUSIONS: Our results demonstrated that procaine administration drastically reduced the mineralization and osteo/odontogenesis of bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells inhibiting Wnt/ß-catenin pathway through the increase of Gsk3ß expression and ß-catenin phosphorylation.

Vitamin D modulates tissue factor and protease-activated receptor 2 expression in vascular smooth muscle cells.

Clinical and epidemiologic studies reveal an association between vitamin D deficiency and increased risk of cardiovascular disease. Because vascular smooth muscle cell (VSMC)-derived tissue factor (TF) is suggested to be critical for arterial thrombosis, we investigated whether the vitamin D molecules calcitriol and paricalcitol could reduce the expression of TF induced by the proinflammatory cytokine TNF-α in human aortic VSMCs. We found that, compared with controls, incubation with TNF-α increased TF expression and procoagulant activity in a NF-κB-dependent manner, as deduced from the increased nuclear translocation of nuclear factor κ-light-chain-enhancer of activated B cells protein 65 (p65-NF-κB) and direct interaction of NF-κB to the TF promoter. This was accompanied by the up-regulation of TF signaling mediator protease-activated receptor 2 (PAR-2) expression and by the down-regulation of vitamin D receptor expression in a miR-346-dependent way. However, addition of calcitriol or paricalcitol blunted the TNF-α-induced TF expression and activity (2.01 ± 0.24 and 1.32 ± 0.14 vs. 3.02 ± 0.39 pmol/mg protein, P < 0.05), which was associated with down-regulation of NF-κB signaling and PAR-2 expression, as well as with restored levels of vitamin D receptor and enhanced expression of TF pathway inhibitor. Our data suggest that inflammation promotes a prothrombotic state through the up-regulation of TF function in VSMCs and that the beneficial cardiovascular effects of vitamin D may be partially due to decreases in TF expression and its activity in VSMCs.

Angiotensin II prevents calcification in vascular smooth muscle cells by enhancing magnesium influx.

BACKGROUND: Vascular calcification (VC) is highly prevalent in patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD). Low magnesium levels are associated with VC, and recent in vitro studies confirm a protective role of magnesium, which is mediated by its entry into the VSMCs through the Transient Receptor Potential Melastatin 7 (TRPM7) channel. The role of Angiotensin II (Ang II) on VC is still unclear. As Ang II is able to stimulate TRPM7 activity, we hypothesize that it might prevent VC. Thus, the aim of this study was to dissect the direct effect of Ang II on VC. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We worked with a model of high phosphate (HP)-induced calcification in human aortic smooth muscle cells, which resembles the CKD-related VC. RESULTS: Addition of Ang II to cells growing in HP decreased calcification, which was associated with the upregulation of the osteogenic factors BMP2, Runx2/Cbfa1, Osterix and ALP. A reduction of magnesium entry into the HP-calcifying cells was found. The treatment with Ang II avoided this reduction, which was reversed by the cotreatment with the TRPM7-inhibitor 2-APB. The protective effect of Ang II was related to AT1R-induced ERK1/2 MAPKinase activation. HP-induced calcification was also associated with the upregulation of the canonical Wnt/beta-catenin pathway, while its downregulation was related to attenuation of calcification by Ang II. CONCLUSION: As hypothesized, Ang II prevented phosphate-induced calcification in VSMCs, which appears mediated by the increase of magnesium influx and by the activation of the ERK1/2 and the inhibition of the canonical Wnt/beta-catenin signalling pathways.

Endothelial microparticles mediate inflammation-induced vascular calcification.

Stimulation of endothelial cells (ECs) with TNF-α causes an increase in the expression of bone morphogenetic protein-2 (BMP-2) and the production of endothelial microparticles (EMPs). BMP-2 is known to produce osteogenic differentiation of vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs). It was found that EMPs from TNF-α-stimulated endothelial cells (HUVECs) contained a significant amount of BMP-2 and were able to enhance VSMC osteogenesis and calcification. Calcium content was greater in VSMCs exposed to EMPs from TNF-α-treated HUVECs than EMPs from nontreated HUVECs (3.56 ± 0.57 vs. 1.48 ± 0.56 µg/mg protein; P < 0.05). The increase in calcification was accompanied by up-regulation of Cbfa1 (osteogenic transcription factor) and down-regulation of SM22α (VSMC lineage marker). Inhibition of BMP-2 by small interfering RNA reduced the VSMC calcification induced by EMPs from TNF-α-treated HUVECs. Similar osteogenic capability was observed in EMPs from both patients with chronic kidney disease and senescent cells, which also presented a high level of BMP-2 expression. Labeling of EMPs with CellTracker shows that EMPs are phagocytized by VSMCs under all conditions (with or without high phosphate, control, and EMPs from TNF-α-treated HUVECs). Our data suggest that EC damage results in the release of EMPs with a high content of calcium and BMP-2 that are able to induce calcification and osteogenic differentiation of VSMCs.

TGF-ß prevents phosphate-induced osteogenesis through inhibition of BMP and Wnt/ß-catenin pathways.

BACKGROUND: Transforming growth factor-ß (TGF-ß) is a key cytokine during differentiation of mesenchymal stem cells (MSC) into vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMC). High phosphate induces a phenotypic transformation of vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMC) into osteogenic-like cells. This study was aimed to evaluate signaling pathways involved during VSMC differentiation of MSC in presence or not of high phosphate. RESULTS: Our results showed that TGF-ß induced nuclear translocation of Smad3 as well as the expression of vascular smooth muscle markers, such as smooth muscle alpha actin, SM22α, myocardin, and smooth muscle-myosin heavy chain. The addition of high phosphate to MSC promoted nuclear translocation of Smad1/5/8 and the activation of canonical Wnt/ß-catenin in addition to an increase in BMP-2 expression, calcium deposition and alkaline phosphatase activity. The administration of TGF-ß to MSC treated with high phosphate abolished all these effects by inhibiting canonical Wnt, BMP and TGF-ß pathways. A similar outcome was observed in high phosphate-treated cells after the inhibition of canonical Wnt signaling with Dkk-1. Conversely, addition of both Wnt/ß-catenin activators CHIR98014 and lithium chloride enhanced the effect of high phosphate on BMP-2, calcium deposition and alkaline phosphatase activity. CONCLUSIONS: Full VSMC differentiation induced by TGF-ß may not be achieved when extracellular phosphate levels are high. Moreover, TGF-ß prevents high phosphate-induced osteogenesis by decreasing the nuclear translocation of Smad 1/5/8 and avoiding the activation of Wnt/ß-catenin pathway.

Magnesium inhibits Wnt/ß-catenin activity and reverses the osteogenic transformation of vascular smooth muscle cells.

Magnesium reduces vascular smooth muscle cell (VSMC) calcification in vitro but the mechanism has not been revealed so far. This work used only slightly increased magnesium levels and aimed at determining: a) whether inhibition of magnesium transport into the cell influences VSMC calcification, b) whether Wnt/ß-catenin signaling, a key mediator of osteogenic differentiation, is modified by magnesium and c) whether magnesium can influence already established vascular calcification. Human VSMC incubated with high phosphate (3.3 mM) and moderately elevated magnesium (1.4 mM) significantly reduced VSMC calcification and expression of the osteogenic transcription factors Cbfa-1 and osterix, and up-regulated expression of the natural calcification inhibitors matrix Gla protein (MGP) and osteoprotegerin (OPG). The protective effects of magnesium on calcification and expression of osteogenic markers were no longer observed in VSMC cultured with an inhibitor of cellular magnesium transport (2-aminoethoxy-diphenylborate [2-APB]). High phosphate induced activation of Wnt/ß-catenin pathway as demonstrated by the translocation of ß-catenin into the nucleus, increased expression of the frizzled-3 gene, and downregulation of Dkk-1 gene, a specific antagonist of the Wnt/ß-catenin signaling pathway. The addition of magnesium however inhibited phosphate-induced activation of Wnt/ß-catenin signaling pathway. Furthermore, TRPM7 silencing using siRNA resulted in activation of Wnt/ß-catenin signaling pathway. Additional experiments were performed to test the ability of magnesium to halt the progression of already established VSMC calcification in vitro. The delayed addition of magnesium decreased calcium content, down-regulated Cbfa-1 and osterix and up-regulated MGP and OPG, when compared with a control group. This effect was not observed when 2-APB was added. In conclusion, magnesium transport through the cell membrane is important to inhibit VSMC calcification in vitro. Inhibition of Wnt/ß-catenin by magnesium is one potential intracellular mechanism by which this anti-calcifying effect is achieved.

The effect of vitamin D derivatives on vascular calcification associated with inflammation.

BACKGROUND: Vitamin D sterols may modulate vascular response to inflammation and vascular calcification (VC). METHODS: Rat aortic rings (RARs) and human vascular smooth muscle cells (HVSMCs) were treated in vitro with phosphate (P), tumour necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α), calcitriol (CTR) and paricalcitol (PCT). Rats having undergone subtotal nephrectomy (Nx) (n = 66) on a high-phosphorus diet were treated with Escherichia coli lipopolysacharide (LPS) (40-400 µg/kg/day) or LPS plus CTR (80 ng/kg/48 h) or LPS plus PCT (240 ng/kg/48 h) for 14 days. RESULTS: In vitro, the addition of TNF-α to the medium increased the mineral content of RAR and HVSMC. Treatment with both vitamin D analogues decreased bone morphogenetic protein 2 but did not modify Runx-2. Calcification was prevented only by PCT. In vivo, treatment with LPS increased plasma levels of TNF-α, monocyte chemotactic protein-1 and interleukin-1alfa and induced calcification. The concomitant administration of LPS with either CTR or PCT led to a significant decrease in cytokine plasma levels and the decrease was more accentuated after treatment with PCT than with CTR. Rats treated with CTR showed an elevation in aortic Ca and marked Von Kossa staining; however, rats treated with PCT did not increase aortic Ca and did not show Von Kossa staining. CONCLUSION: Treatment with PCT resulted in more marked anti-inflammatory effect than treatment with CTR and, as opposed to CTR, PCT prevented VC.

High-phosphate-induced calcification is related to SM22α promoter methylation in vascular smooth muscle cells.

Hyperphosphatemia is closely related to vascular calcification in patients with chronic kidney disease. Vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs) exposed to high phosphate concentrations in vitro undergo phenotypic transition to osteoblast-like cells. Mechanisms underlying this transdifferentiation are not clear. In this study we used two in vitro models, human aortic smooth muscle cells and rat aortic rings, to investigate the phenotypic transition of VSMCs induced by high phosphate. We found that high phosphate concentration (3.3 mmol/L) in the medium was associated with increased DNA methyltransferase activity and methylation of the promoter region of SM22α. This was accompanied by loss of the smooth muscle cell-specific protein SM22α, gain of the osteoblast transcription factor Cbfa1, and increased alkaline phosphatase activity with the subsequent in vitro calcification. The addition of a demethylating agent (procaine) to the high-phosphate medium reduced DNA methyltransferase activity and prevented methylation of the SM22α promoter, which was accompanied by an increase in SM22α expression and less calcification. Additionally, downregulation of SM22α, either by siRNA or by a methyl group donor (S-adenosyl methionine), resulted in overexpression of Cbfa1. In conclusion, we demonstrate that methylation of SM22α promoter is an important event in vascular smooth muscle cell calcification and that high phosphate induces this epigenetic modification. These findings uncover a new insight into mechanisms by which high phosphate concentration promotes vascular calcification.