VEGF₁₆₅ mediates glomerular endothelial repair

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Abstract

VEGF165, the most abundant isoform in man, is an angiogenic cytokine that also regulates vascular permeability. Its function in the renal glomerulus, where it is expressed in visceral epithelial and mesangial cells, is unknown. To assess the role of VEGF165 in glomerular disease, we administered a novel antagonist — a high-affinity, nuclease-resistant RNA aptamer coupled to 40-kDa polyethylene glycol (PEG) — to normal rats and to rats with mesangioproliferative nephritis, passive Heymann nephritis (PHN), or puromycin aminonucleoside nephrosis (PAN). In normal rats, antagonism of VEGF165 for 21 days failed to induce glomerular pathology or proteinuria. In rats with mesangioproliferative nephritis, the VEGF165 aptamer (but not a sequence-scrambled control RNA or PEG alone) led to a reduction of glomerular endothelial regeneration and an increase in endothelial cell death, provoking an 8-fold increase in the frequency of glomerular microaneurysms by day 6. In contrast, early leukocyte influx and the proliferation, activation, and matrix accumulation of mesangial cells were not affected in these rats. In rats with PHN or PAN, administration of the VEGF165 aptamer did not influence the course of proteinuria using various dosages and administration routes. These data identify VEGF165 as a factor of central importance for endothelial cell survival and repair in glomerular disease, and point to a potentially novel way to influence the course of glomerular diseases characterized by endothelial cell damage, such as various glomerulonephritides, thrombotic microangiopathies, or renal transplant rejection.

Authors

Tammo Ostendorf, Uta Kunter, Frank Eitner, Anneke Loos, Heinz Regele, Dontscho Kerjaschki, Dwight D. Henninger, Nebojsa Janjic, Jürgen Floege