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(Circulation. 2004;110:1953-1959.)
© 2004 American Heart Association, Inc.
Genetics |
From the Donald W. Reynolds Cardiovascular Clinical Research Center, Department of Medicine (Y.F., J.D., Y.S., M.T.C., C.C.H., P.R.L., N.V.), and the Department of Pathology (E.R.-A., F.J.S.), Brigham and Womens Hospital, Harvard Medical School, and the Department of Medicine (S.M.K.), Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Mass.
Correspondence to Masanori Aikawa, MD, PhD, Brigham and Womens Hospital, Harvard Medical School, 77 Ave Louis Pasteur, NRB741, Boston, MA 02115. E-mail maikawa{at}rics.bwh.harvard.edu
Received November 6, 2003; de novo received May 24, 2004; accepted May 26, 2004.
| Abstract |
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Methods and Results To test the hypothesis that collagenases influence the structure of atheromata, we examined collagen accumulation in atherosclerotic lesions of apolipoprotein E-deficient mice (apoE/) that express collagenase-resistant collagen-I (ColR/R/apoE/, n=12) or wild-type collagen-expressing mice (Col+/+/apoE/, n=12). Aortic atheromata of both groups had similar sizes and numbers of macrophages, a major source of collagenases. However, aortic intimas from ColR/R/apoE/ mice contained fewer smooth muscle cells, a source of collagen, probably because of decreased migration or proliferation or increased cell death. Despite reduced numbers of smooth muscle cells, atheromata of ColR/R/apoE/ mice contained significantly more intimal collagen than did those of Col+/+/apoE/ mice.
Conclusion These results establish that collagenase action regulates plaque collagen turnover and smooth muscle cell accumulation.
| Introduction |
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Smooth muscle cells (SMCs) participate in the progression of atherosclerosis. Migration from the tunica media and the balance between proliferation and cell death determine SMC content in the intima. Although some studies suggest that MMPs may mediate SMC migration through the collagenous matrix of plaques,1519 the in vivo role of collagenases in this context remains unproven.
Interstitial collagenases of the MMP family initiate degradation of type I collagen by cleavage at a single highly conserved site between Gly775 and Ile776 of the
1(I) chain. The present study used mice with a targeted mutation in both alleles of Col1a1 (Col1a1tml Jae or ColR/R) that yields amino acid substitutions around the collagenase cleavage site in the
1(I) chains that render collagen completely resistant to attack by MMP collagenases.2022 We crossed ColR/R mice and apoE-deficient strain (apoE/) mice to test the specific biological hypothesis in vivo that MMP collagenases regulate collagen accumulation in intimal plaques, an aspect of plaque structure critical to the progression and complications of atherosclerosis.
| Methods |
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Tissue Preparation
Mice were anesthetized and perfused with phosphate-buffered saline (pH 7.4) through a 23-gauge cannula in the left ventricle. The hearts were subsequently immersed in saline for 1 hour and then with 4% phosphate-buffered paraformaldehyde (pH 7.4) for an additional 48 hours. Hearts dissected in the region of the proximal aorta23 were embedded in paraffin, and 5-µm serial sections were cut. Histological analyses used sections
50 µm above the beginning of the aortic sinuses. The aortas for RNA extraction were harvested, and the adventitia was removed while being viewed under a microscope.
Histological Assays
Immunohistochemistry studies included use of a mouse monoclonal antibody against human
-SM actin (Dako) with a kit for mouse antibodies on mouse tissue (InnoGenex), rat monoclonal antibody against mouse macrophages (Mac3, PharMingen), rabbit polyclonal antibody against MMP-13/collagenase-3 (a gift from Dr C. William Wu, University of Tennessee, Memphis),24 rabbit polyclonal anti-mouse cathepsin K (Santa Cruz), or nonimmune rabbit IgG as a negative control. The peptide at the linker region between propeptide and catalytic domains (PNPKHPKTPEK) was chosen from the amino acid sequence of mouse MMP-13/collagenase-3 to raise the specific antibody. The sequence of this peptide significantly differs from all other proteins including MMPs (E values >4.7, NCBI Blast). A mouse proliferating cell nuclear antigen staining kit (Zymed) and ApopTaq Plus (Intergen) were used to determine cell proliferation and death. We analyzed picrosirius red staining under polarized light to detect interstitial collagen.8
Peritoneal Macrophage Culture
Four days after an intraperitoneal injection of 4.1% thioglycollate, primary peritoneal macrophages were harvested from mice and cultured with Dulbeccos modified Eagles medium (DMEM). After incubation with DMEM containing 10% fetal calf serum for 24 hours, the culture media of adherent cells were changed to fresh DMEM with or without 10% fetal calf serum and incubated for 72 hours.
RT-PCR and Western Blotting
Total RNA was extracted from peritoneal macrophages (n=3 per group) and mouse aortas (pooled, n=3 per group) and reverse-transcribed (RT). Real-time PCR used SYBR Green PCR master mix and the ABI PRISM 5600 sequence detection system (Applied Biosystems). Oligonucleotide primer pairs used to recognize mouse mRNAs included MMP-8, 5'-CAA-CCT-ATT-TCT-CGT-GGC-TG -3'and 5'-TGC-AGG-TCA-TAG-CCA-CTT-AG-3'; MMP13, 5'-TCC-CTT-GAT-GCC-ATT-ACC-AGT-C-3' and 5'-AAA-AAG-AGC-TCA-GCC-TCA-ACC-TG;
1 procollagen-I, 5'-AAG-GTG-CTG-ATG-GTT-CTC-C-3' and 5'-TCT-TTC-TCC-TCT-CTG-ACC-G-3'; and ß-actin (internal control), 5'-CAC-ACT-GTG-CCC-ATC-TAC-GA-3' and 5'-GTT-TCA-TGG-ATG-CCA-CAG-GA-3'.
Cell lysates for Western blotting from peritoneal macrophages were obtained with use of a buffer containing 125 mmol/L Tris-HCl, pH 6.8, 20% glycerol, 4.6% sodium dodecyl sulfate, and 10% mercaptoethanol. Western blotting used the same rabbit polyclonal antibody against MMP-13/collagenase-3 as for immunohistochemistry.
Preparation of Mouse SMCs and Migration Assay
Isolation of mouse SMCs for migration assay was adapted from the method of Gunther et al.25 Aortas from C57BL/6 mice were digested with 1 mg/mL collagenase type II (Worthington). After the endothelium and adventitia were carefully removed, aortas were chopped and digested with type I collagenase (1 mg/mL, Worthington) and elastase III (0.125 mg/mL, Sigma). Cells were then cultured and passaged. SMC migration was evaluated with dual-chamber 24-well plates with 8-µm polycarbonate membranes (Costar) coated with 10 µg/mL collagen solution extracted from Col+/+/apoE/ or ColR/R/apoE/ mice.20 The lower chambers were filled with DMEM with or without 1 ng/mL platelet-derived growth factor-BB, and 40 000 cells were added to the upper chambers. After incubation for 4 hours, cells that had migrated to the lower surface of the membrane were fixed, stained with use of the Protocol HEMA3 staining kit (Fisher), and counted in 4 x100 fields per well.
Quantitative Analysis and Statistics
Quantitative analysis of histological assays used a digital imaging system as previously described.8,12 In brief, images were transferred into an ImagePro image analysis system (Media Cybernetics). A color threshold mask for immunostaining was defined by sampling the red color, and the same threshold was applied to all specimens. The percentage of the total area with positive color for each section was recorded. For picrosirius red staining, a negative background (black) was chosen for thresholding, and the positive area was calculated by subtraction. Two investigators performed these analyses independently and without knowledge of genotype. Interobserver correlation was excellent (r=0.98). Differences between the 2 groups or among multiple groups were determined by the Mann-Whitney U test or 1-way ANOVA followed by Fisher test, respectively.
| Results |
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Alterations in Endogenous Collagenase and Procollagen Expression
Previous animal studies demonstrated disparate results with regard to the role of MMPs on atheroma burden.2630 In aortic atheromata from cholesterol-fed ColR/R/apoE/ and Col+/+/apoE/ mice, lesion areas were similar (Figures 1A1C). Collagenase resistance also did not change macrophage areas and areas where cells expressed MMP-13/collagenase-3 (Figures 1A1C). We furthermore observed no significant difference in areas immunopositive for cathepsin K, a major non-MMP collagenase (data not shown, P=0.78) We then evaluated possible alterations in endogenous collagenase expression in response to collagenase resistance. Levels of MMP-8/collagenase-2 and MMP-13/collagenase-3 mRNAs by real-time RT-PCR on thioglycollate-stimulated peritoneal macrophages were similar in both groups of mice (Figure 2A). However, macrophage expression of MMP-13/collagenase-3 appeared to be more abundant than that of MMP-8/collagenase-2 (Figure 2A). Protein expression of latent and active MMP-13/collagenase-3 in both groups as evaluated from Western blots was similar (pro-MMP-13,
57 kDa; active MMP-13,
45 kDa with subsequent autolytic cleavage to a 20-kDa form; Figure 2B). Absorption by the same peptide that was used to raise the antibody (PNPKHPKTPEK) diminished these bands. These results indicate that collagenase resistance did not affect the capacity of macrophages to express collagenases.
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We further examined levels of mRNAs encoding collagenases in the aortas. Real-time RT-PCR showed an increase in MMP-13/collagenase-3 mRNA levels and a decrease in
1 type I procollagen mRNA levels in aortas from ColR/R/apoE/ mice compared with those from Col+/+/apoE/ mice (n=3 each, pooled), whereas MMP-8/collagenase-2 mRNA levels did not change substantially (Figure 2C). Levels of mRNA encoding Mcol-A, a possible mouse orthologue of MMP-1/collagenase-1,31 were below the limits of detectability in these assays (data not shown).
Collagenase-Resistant Mice Have Fewer Intimal SMCs
SMCs synthesize most arterial collagen. Atheromata of ColR/R/apoE/ mice contained significantly fewer SMCs than did those of Col+/+/apoE/ mice (Figures 3A and 3B). Proliferating cell nuclear antigen and terminal dUTP nick end-labeling staining indicated decreased proliferation and increased death of intimal SMCs in ColR/R/apoE/ mice compared with Col+/+/apoE/ mice (Figure 4A and 4B). SMCs enter the intima by migration from the tunica media or from the blood. To determine whether collagenase resistance influences the ability of SMCs to migrate, we performed in vitro migration assay with dual-chamber plates. Because the current study used compound-mutant mice for the substrate, not for enzymes, we measured the traversal of wild-type SMCs from C57BL6 mice through polycarbonate filters coated with a layer of interstitial collagen extracted from Col+/+/apoE/ or ColR/R/apoE/ mice. This assay showed a decreased ability of SMCs to migrate through collagenase-resistant collagen compared with wild-type collagen (Figure 4C and 4D).
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Collagenase Resistance Increases Collagen Content in the Intima of Aortic Atheromata of ApoE/ Mice
The tunica intima of aortic atheromata of Col+/+/apoE/ mice exhibited patchy accumulation of interstitial collagen, as determined by picrosirius red staining analyzed by polarization (Figure 5A). However, the aortic intimas of ColR/R/apoE/ mice contained substantially more interstitial collagen than did those of Col+/+/apoE/ mice. Quantitative analyses of picrosirius red birefringence in the intima indicated that collagenase resistance significantly increased collagen content in terms of absolute area, percentage area, and area divided by SMC number, a major source of collagen production (Figure 5B).
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| Discussion |
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The reduced SMC accumulation in atheromata was an unexpected phenotype of these compound-mutant mice. The mechanistic studies presented here suggest that a combination of decreased migration, decreased proliferation, and/or increased cell death contribute to the relative paucity of SMCs in plaques of ColR/R/apoE/ mice. These results agree with previous studies that showed that native, undegraded interstitial collagen can limit SMC proliferation and that SMC migration in vitro depends in large part on MMP action.1519,34 Our finding of increased apoptosis in SMCs resembles the increased apoptosis observed in osteoblasts and osteocytes in ColR/R mice.22 ColR/R mice also display increased collagen accumulation in the wounded dermis and in experimental hepatic cirrhosis.35,36
The present study supports an in vivo role for collagen breakdown by MMP-family collagenases in the regulation of the collagenous skeleton of atheromata, an important determinant of the plaques propensity to provoke an acute thrombotic event in patients. Regulation of collagen biology also has profound effects on SMC functions, as shown here. Our findings underscore the importance of the regulation of collagen metabolism in the pathophysiology of the atherosclerotic plaque.
| Acknowledgments |
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