Project description:Aorta was isolated from ANF-Cre positive / BMP10 loxP/loxP / BMP9-/- (BMP9/10 dKO) mice. ANF-Cre negative BMP10 loxP/loxP mice were used as controls. Transcriptional profiling was performed to understand the importance of BMP9/10 expression on aorta function.
Project description:Aorta was isolated from ANF-Cre positive/BMP10 loxP/loxP/BMP9-/- (BMP9/10 dKO) mice. ANF-Cre negative BMP10 loxP/loxP mice were used as controls. Transcritional profiling was performed to understand the impact of BMP9/10 expression on aorta function.
Project description:This study was designed to compare the global gene expression change induced by the circulating, prodomain bound forms of BMP9 and BMP10 (pro-BMP9 and pro-BMP10) in human pulmonary arterial endothelial cells (PAECs). This is different from many previous studies which used the growth factor domain of BMP9 and/or BMP10.
Project description:Endogenous retroviruses (ERVs) are transposable elements that cause host genome instability and usually play deleterious roles such as tumorigenesis. Recent advances also suggest that this 'enemy within' may encode viral mimic to induce antiviral immune responses through viral sensors. Here, through whole genome RNA-seq we discovered a full-length ERV-derived long non-coding RNA (lncRNA), designated lnc-EPAV (ERV-derived lncRNA positively regulates antiviral responses), as a positive regulator of NF-κB signaling. Lnc-EPAV expression was rapidly up-regulated by viral RNA mimic or RNA viruses to facilitate the expression of RELA, an NF-κB subunit that plays a critical role in antiviral responses. In turn, RELA promoted the transcription of lnc-EPAV to form a positive feedback loop. Transcriptome analysis of lnc-EPAV-silenced macrophages, combined with gain- and loss-of-function experiments, showed that lnc-EPAV was critical for induction of type I interferon (IFN) and inflammatory cytokine expression by RNA viruses. Consistently, lnc-EPAV-deficient mice exhibited reduced expression of type I IFNs, and consequently increased viral loads and mortality following lethal RNA virus infection. Mechanistically, lnc-EPAV promoted expression of RELA by competitively binding to and displacing SFPQ, a transcriptional repressor of RELA. The binding between ERV-derived RNAs and SFPQ also existed in human cells. Altogether, our work demonstrates an alternative mechanism by which ERVs regulate antiviral immune responses.
Project description:BMP9 and BMP10 are two key regulators of vascular homeostasis. These two ligands bind with high affinity to the endothelial type I receptor ALK1 together with a type 2 receptor. Mutations in this signaling pathway have been identified in two rare cardiovascular diseases, hereditary hemorrhagic telangiectasia and pulmonary arterial hypertension. So far, only the canonical SMAD signaling pathway has been extensively studied in response to BMPs. The aim of this work was to address early phosphoproteomic changes in endothelial cells in response to short-term stimulation (30 mins) with BMP9 and BMP10 in order to identify new phosphorylated targets and signaling pathways.
