Diabetic retinopathy (DR) is the leading cause of blindness in working-age adults. Early stage DR involves inflammation, vascular leakage, apoptosis of vascular cells and neurodegeneration. In this study, we hypothesized that cells derived from the stromal fraction of adipose tissue (ASC) could therapeutically rescue early stage DR features. Streptozotocin (STZ) induced diabetic athymic nude rats received single intravitreal injection of human ASC into one eye and saline into the other eye. Two months post onset of diabetes, administration of ASC significantly improved “b” wave amplitude (as measured by electroretinogram) within 1–3 weeks of injection compared to saline treated diabetic eyes. Subsequently, retinal histopathological evaluation revealed a significant decrease in vascular leakage and apoptotic cells around the retinal vessels in the diabetic eyes that received ASC compared to the eyes that received saline injection. In addition, molecular analyses have shown down-regulation in inflammatory gene expression in diabetic retina that received ASC compared to eyes that received saline. Interestingly, ASC were found to be localized near retinal vessels at higher densities than seen in age matched non-diabetic retina that received ASC. In vitro, ASC displayed sustained proliferation and decreased apoptosis under hyperglycemic stress. In addition, ASC in co-culture with retinal endothelial cells enhance endothelial survival and collaborate to form vascular networks. Taken together, our findings suggest that ASC are able to rescue the neural retina from hyperglycemia-induced degeneration, resulting in importantly improved visual function. Our pre-clinical studies support the translational development of adipose stem cell-based therapy for DR to address both retinal capillary and neurodegeneration.

Senescence of endothelial cells increases with systemic aging and is thought to contribute to the development of atherosclerosis. Cell therapy with highly proliferative endothelial progenitor cells (EPCs) is an emerging therapeutic option to promote endothelial regeneration, but little is known about their senescence and their vulnerability to inflammatory stressors. We therefore studied the senescence of proliferative human EPCs and investigated the effects of the proinflammatory cytokine tumor necrosis factor‐α (TNF‐α) on their senescence. Human EPCs had a significantly lower rate of senescence at baseline, compared with that of mature endothelial cells. However, EPCs up‐regulated the expression of the senescence‐associated cell cycle arrest protein p16 ^INK4a and markedly increased measured senescence levels when exposed to chronic TNF‐α treatment. Analysis of telomere length showed that the increases in senescence were not related to changes in telomere length. Inhibition of the p38 mitogen‐activated protein kinase pathway blocked the induction of p16 ^INK4a and cellular senescence. In conclusion, highly proliferative EPCs have a low rate of intrinsic senescence but are vulnerable to premature senescence induction by chronic proinflammatory stimulation. These findings will lead to a better understanding of physiological endothelial regeneration as well as to targeted therapies with the aim of promoting endothelial regeneration through endothelial progenitor cells.— Zhang, Y., Herbert, B.‐S., Rajashekhar, G., Ingram, D. A., Yoder, M. C., Clauss, M., Rehman. J. Premature senescence of highly proliferative endothelial progenitor cells is induced by tumor necrosis factor‐α via the p38 mitogen‐activated protein kinase pathway. FASEBJ. 23, 1358–1365 (2009)

Acute kidney injury (AKI), a significant complication of cisplatin chemotherapy is associated with reactive oxygen species (ROS)-dependent renal cell death, but the cellular targets of ROS in cisplatin nephrotoxicity are not fully resolved. Here, we investigated cisplatin-induced oxidative renal damage and tested the hypothesis that ROS-dependent shedding of death activator Fas ligand (FasL) occurs in cisplatin nephropathy. We show that intraperitoneal injection of sulfobutyl ether-β-cyclodextrin (Captisol™)-solubilized cisplatin elevated the level of lipid peroxidation product malondialdehyde in mouse kidneys and urinary concentration of oxidative DNA damage biomarker 8-hydroxy-2′-deoxyguanosine. Cisplatin increased mouse kidney-to-body weight ratio and the plasma or urinary levels of predictive biomarkers of AKI, including creatinine, blood urea nitrogen, microalbumin, neutrophil gelatinase-associated lipocalin, and cystatin C. Histological analysis and dUTP nick end labeling of kidney sections indicated tubular injury and renal apoptosis, respectively in cisplatin-treated mice. Whereas the plasma concentration of soluble FasL (sFasL) was unaltered, urinary sFasL was increased ∼4-fold in cisplatin-treated mice. Real-time quantitative live-cell imaging and lactate dehydrogenase assay showed that cisplatin stimulated caspase 3/7 activation and cytotoxicity in a human proximal tubule epithelial cell line which were attenuated by inhibitors of the FasL/Fas system and poly [ADP-ribose] polymerase-1. Moreover, TEMPOL, an intracellular free radical scavenger mitigated cisplatin-induced renal oxidative stress and injury, AKI biomarker and urinary sFasL elevation, and proximal tubule cell death. Our findings indicate that cisplatin-induced oxidative stress triggers the shedding of membrane-bound FasL to sFasL in the kidney. We demonstrate that cisplatin elicits nephrotoxicity by promoting FasL/Fas-dependent oxidative renal tubular cell death.

Adipose stromal cells (ASC) are multipotential mesenchymal progenitor cells that are readily induced to undergo adipogenic differentiation, and we have recently demonstrated them to have functional and phenotypic overlap with pericytes lining microvessels in adipose tissues. In this study we addressed the hypothesis that modulation of ASC fate within this perivascular niche can occur via interaction with endothelial cells (EC), which serve to modulate the adipogenic potential of ASC. To this end, we investigated contact as well as paracrine effects of EC on ASC adipogenesis, in two-dimensional coculture and via conditioned medium and analyzed mutual gene expression changes by real-time reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (PCR). A significant decrease in adipogenic differentiation was observed in ASC when they were cocultured with EC but not control fibroblasts. This endothelial cell-specific effect was accompanied by increased expression of factors involved in Wnt signaling, most prominently Wnt1, Wnt4, and Wnt10a, which are well-known inhibitors of adipogenesis. Suppression of Wnt1 but not Wnt 10a or scrambled control short interfering RNA in cocultures partially reversed the endothelial cell effect, thus increasing adipogenic differentiation, suggesting a plausible role of Wnt1 ligand in modulation of adipogenesis by the vasculature. Furthermore, addition of recombinant Wnt ligand or the Wnt signaling agonist inhibited adipogenic differentiation of ASC in the absence of EC. In conclusion, these data define the relationship in adipose tissue between ASC and EC in the perivascular niche, in which the latter act to repress adipogenesis, thereby stabilizing vasculature. It is tempting to speculate that abnormal endothelial function may be associated with pathologic derepression of adipogenesis. Disclosure of potential conflicts of interest is found at the end of this article.

Rationale: Vascular endothelial growth factor receptor (VEGFR) inhibition increases ceramides in lung structural cells of the alveolus, initiating apoptosis and alveolar destruction morphologically resembling emphysema. The effects of increased endogenous ceramides could be offset by sphingosine 1-phosphate (S1P), a prosurvival by-product of ceramide metabolism. Objectives: The aims of our work were to investigate the sphingosine–S1P–S1P receptor axis in the VEGFR inhibition model of emphysema and to determine whether stimulation of S1P signaling is sufficient to functionally antagonize alveolar space enlargement. Methods: Concurrent to VEGFR blockade in mice, S1P signaling augmentation was achieved via treatment with the S1P precursor sphingosine, S1P agonist FTY720, or S1P receptor-1 (S1PR1) agonist SEW2871. Outcomes included sphingosine kinase-1 RNA expression and activity, sphingolipid measurements by combined liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry, immunoblotting for prosurvival signaling pathways, caspase-3 activity and terminal deoxynucleotidyltransferase–mediated dUTP nick end labeling assays, and airspace morphometry. Measurements and Main Results: Consistent with previously reported de novo activation of ceramide synthesis, VEGFR inhibition triggered increases in lung ceramides, dihydroceramides, and dihydrosphingosine, but did not alter sphingosine kinase activity or S1P levels. Administration of sphingosine decreased the ceramide-to-S1P ratio in the lung and inhibited alveolar space enlargement, along with activation of prosurvival signaling pathways and decreased lung parenchyma cell apoptosis. Sphingosine significantly opposed ceramide-induced apoptosis in cultured lung endothelial cells, but not epithelial cells. FTY720 or SEW2871 recapitulated the protective effects of sphingosine on airspace enlargement concomitant with attenuation of VEGFR inhibitor–induced lung apoptosis. Conclusions: Strategies aimed at augmenting the S1P–S1PR1 signaling may be effective in ameliorating the apoptotic mechanisms of emphysema development.

Pulmonary emphysema is a disease characterized by alveolar cellular loss and inflammation. Recently, excessive apoptosis of structural alveolar cells has emerged as a major mechanism in the development of emphysema. Here, we investigated the proapoptotic and monocyte chemoattractant cytokine endothelial monocyte-activating protein 2 (EMAPII). Lung-specific overexpression of EMAPII in mice caused simplification of alveolar structures, apoptosis, and macrophage accumulation, compared with that in control transgenic mice. Additionally, in a mouse model of cigarette smoke–induced (CS-induced) emphysema, EMAPII levels were significantly increased in murine lungs. This upregulation was necessary for emphysema development, as neutralizing antibodies to EMAPII resulted in reduced alveolar cell apoptosis, inflammation, and emphysema-associated structural changes in alveoli and small airways and improved lung function. The mechanism of EMAPII upregulation involved an apoptosis-dependent feed-forward loop, since caspase-3 instillation in the lung markedly increased EMAPII expression, while caspase inhibition decreased its production, even in transgenic EMAPII mice. These findings may have clinical significance, as both current smokers and ex-smoker chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) patients had increased levels of secreted EMAPII in the bronchoalveolar lavage fluid compared with that of nonsmokers. In conclusion, we suggest that EMAPII perpetuates the mechanism of CS-induced lung emphysema in mice and, given its secretory nature, is a suitable target for neutralization antibody therapy.