Abstract
Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF)-induced blood vessel growth is involved in both physiological and pathological angiogenesis and requires integrin-mediated signaling. We now show that an integrin-binding protein initially described in milk-fat globule, MFG-E8 (also known as lactadherin), is expressed in and around blood vessels and has a crucial role in VEGF-dependent neovascularization in the adult mouse. Using neutralizing antibodies and lactadherin-deficient animals, we show that lactadherin interacts with αvβ3 and αvβ5 integrins and alters both VEGF-dependent Akt phosphorylation and neovascularization. In the absence of VEGF, lactadherin administration induced αvβ3- and αvβ5-dependent Akt phosphorylation in endothelial cells in vitro and strongly improved postischemic neovascularization in vivo. These results show a crucial role for lactadherin in VEGF-dependent neovascularization and identify lactadherin as an important target for the modulation of neovascularization.
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Acknowledgements
The authors thank INSERM, Institut Curie, European Community (grant QLRT-2001-00093) and Ligue Nationale contre le Cancer for funding; H. Laurell and H. Prats (INSERM U397, Toulouse, France) for kind gift of bFGF expression plasmid; K. Mitchell and W. Skarnes (Wellcome Trust, Cambridge, UK) for providing the ES cell line (see http://baygenomics.ucsf.edu). INSERM U689 and Cardiovascular Research Institute of Mastricht are partners of the European Vascular Genomics Network (EVGN), a Network of Excellence granted by the European Commission (contract No. LSHM-CT-2003-503254) and the contribution of S. Heeneman was undertaken in the context of EVGN.
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Supplementary information
Supplementary Fig. 1
Generation of lactadherin-deficient mice. (PDF 100 kb)
Supplementary Fig. 2
Lactadherin and post-ischemic neovascularization. (PDF 143 kb)
Supplementary Fig. 3
Dose-dependent effect of lactadherin antibody administration. (PDF 110 kb)
Supplementary Fig. 4
Role of lactadherin in bFGF pro-angiogenic effect. (PDF 132 kb)
Supplementary Fig. 5
Putative model of lactadherin pro-angiogenic signaling. (PDF 96 kb)
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Silvestre, JS., Théry, C., Hamard, G. et al. Lactadherin promotes VEGF-dependent neovascularization. Nat Med 11, 499–506 (2005). https://doi.org/10.1038/nm1233
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/nm1233
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