Latent TGF-β binding protein 4 promotes elastic fiber assembly by interacting with fibulin-5

K Noda, B Dabovic, K Takagi, T Inoue… - Proceedings of the …, 2013 - National Acad Sciences
K Noda, B Dabovic, K Takagi, T Inoue, M Horiguchi, M Hirai, Y Fujikawa, TO Akama…
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 2013National Acad Sciences
Elastic fiber assembly requires deposition of elastin monomers onto microfibrils, the
mechanism of which is incompletely understood. Here we show that latent TGF-β binding
protein 4 (LTBP-4) potentiates formation of elastic fibers through interacting with fibulin-5, a
tropoelastin-binding protein necessary for elastogenesis. Decreased expression of LTBP-4
in human dermal fibroblast cells by siRNA treatment abolished the linear deposition of
fibulin-5 and tropoelastin on microfibrils. It is notable that the addition of recombinant LTBP-4 …
Elastic fiber assembly requires deposition of elastin monomers onto microfibrils, the mechanism of which is incompletely understood. Here we show that latent TGF-β binding protein 4 (LTBP-4) potentiates formation of elastic fibers through interacting with fibulin-5, a tropoelastin-binding protein necessary for elastogenesis. Decreased expression of LTBP-4 in human dermal fibroblast cells by siRNA treatment abolished the linear deposition of fibulin-5 and tropoelastin on microfibrils. It is notable that the addition of recombinant LTBP-4 to cell culture medium promoted elastin deposition on microfibrils without changing the expression of elastic fiber components. This elastogenic property of LTBP-4 is independent of bound TGF-β because TGF-β–free recombinant LTBP-4 was as potent an elastogenic inducer as TGF-β–bound recombinant LTBP-4. Without LTBP-4, fibulin-5 and tropoelastin deposition was discontinuous and punctate in vitro and in vivo. These data suggest a unique function for LTBP-4 during elastic fibrogenesis, making it a potential therapeutic target for elastic fiber regeneration.
National Acad Sciences