Thrombospondin-2 is upregulated in patients with aortic dissection and enhances angiotensin II-induced smooth muscle cell apoptosis.

Thrombospondin-2 is upregulated in patients with aortic dissection and enhances angiotensin II-induced smooth muscle cell apoptosis. Exp Ther Med. 2020 Dec;20(6):150 Authors: Qi L, Wu K, Shi S, Ji Q, Miao H, Bin Q Abstract Thrombospondin-2 (TSP-2) is an important extracellular matrix protein that is involved in a variety of cardiovascular diseases, including viral myocarditis and abdominal aortic aneurysm. The present study aimed to investigate TSP-2 expression in patients with aortic dissection (AD). Aortas were obtained from patients with AD and healthy donors, and TSP-2 expression level in all samples was measured by western blotting and immunofluorescence assays. Blood samples were also collected from patients with AD and non-AD (NAD) subjects. Circulating TSP-2, tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α and interleukin (IL)-6 levels in each sample were detected using ELISAs. In addition, the effect of TSP-2 on angiotensin II (Ang II)-induced smooth muscle cell (SMC) apoptosis was assessed in vitro. Compared with healthy donors, aortic TSP-2 expression level was significantly increased in patients with AD. Furthermore, TSP-2 was secreted primarily by SMCs, but also by endothelial cells. TSP-2 plasma expression level was also elevated in patients with AD compared with non-AD subjects. Furthermore, TSP-2 serum expression level was positively correlated with TNF-α and IL-6 expression levels in patients with AD. In addition, recombinant mouse ...
Source: Experimental and Therapeutic Medicine - Category: General Medicine Tags: Exp Ther Med Source Type: research