Stretch of the vascular wall by the intraluminal blood pressure stimulates protein synthesis
and contributes to the maintenance of the smooth muscle contractile phenotype. The
expression of most smooth muscle specific genes has been shown to be regulated by serum
response factor and stimulated by increased actin polymerization. Hence we hypothesized
that stretch-induced differentiation is promoted by actin polymerization. Intact mouse portal
veins were cultured under longitudinal stress and compared with unstretched controls. In …