Aneurysms-osteoarthritis syndrome (AOS), caused by SMAD3 mutations, is a recently described autosomal-dominant syndrome characterized by arterial aneurysms, tortuosity, and aortic dissections in combination with osteoarthritis.
Patients harboring a TGFBR1 mutation have similar survival rates (80% survival at 60 years), aortic risk (23% aortic dissection and 18% preventive aortic surgery), and prevalence of extra-aortic features (29% hypertelorism, 53% cervical arterial tortuosity, and 27% wide scars) when compared with patients harboring a TGFBR2 mutation.
We found that chronic angiotensin II (AngII) infusion of mice with vascular smooth muscle cell (VSMC)-specific EP4 gene knockout (VSMC-EP4<sup>-/-</sup>) frequently developed aortic dissection (AD) with severe elastic fiber degradation and VSMC dedifferentiation.
MATERIAL AND METHODS Twenty-four 8-month-old C57BL/6J mice were divided into three groups and studied for two weeks: 1) the aortic dissection (AD) Model group (N=8) underwent intraperitoneal injection of angiotensin II (Ang II) (5 ml/kg) three times every 24 h; 2) the mercaptoethanol Treated group (N=8) were given oral mercaptoethanol (2.5 mM); the Normal group (N=8) underwent intraperitoneal injection of noradrenaline (5 mg/kg) three times every 24 h. Sections of mouse aorta were prepared for histology with hematoxylin and eosin (H&E) staining; immunohistochemistry was performed to detect levels of: nuclear factor (erythroid-derived 2)-like 2 (NFE2L2), nuclear factor κB (NF-κB), p65, superoxide dismutase-1 (SOD1), glutamate cysteine ligase catalytic subunit (GCLC), tumor necrosis factor α (TNF-α), interleukin-1β (IL-1β), and matrix metalloproteinase-9 (MMP9).
Here, we analyzed angiotensin II (Ang II)-induced mice with combined deficiency of the LDL receptor and the catalytic component of the apolipoprotein B-edisome complex (Ldlr<sup>-/-</sup>/Apobec1<sup>-/-</sup> [WKO]) to understand AA formation and AD occurrence in relation to plasma lipid composition.
We treated mice on C57BL/6 and FVB genetic backgrounds with β-aminopropionitrile monofumarate (BAPN), an irreversible inhibitor of lysyl oxidase, for 4 wk, followed by angiotensin II (Ang II) infusion for 24 h. We found that the BAPN plus Ang II treatment induced formation of aortic dissections in 100% of mice on both genetic backgrounds.
Interleukin-6-signal transducer and activator of transcription-3 signaling mediates aortic dissections induced by angiotensin II via the T-helper lymphocyte 17-interleukin 17 axis in C57BL/6 mice.
Intriguingly, HHcy greatly increased the incidence of angiotensin II-induced AAA and aortic dissection in apolipoprotein E-deficient mice (vehicle versus Hcy: 50% versus 100%; P<0.05).
Spontaneous multivessel cervical artery dissection in a patient with a substitution of alanine for glycine (G13A) in the alpha 1 (I) chain of type I collagen.
In this study, we investigated the correlations between the FBN1 genotype-phenotype and aortic events (aortic dissection and aortic aneurysm) in patients with Marfan syndrome.
These results demonstrate that the deleterious mutations in FBN1 largely contribute to pathogenesis of sporadic non-syndromic AD, which expands our knowledge of FBN1 variants and the genetic basis and pathology of AD.
Our study provides evidence for the following: (i) FBN1 SNPs rs2118181, rs1036477, rs10519177, rs4774517, rs755251 may increase susceptibility to aortic dissections and (ii) FBN1 SNPs rs2118181, rs1036477 to the formation of aortic aneurysms.
We investigated FBN1 genotype-phenotype correlations with aortic events (aortic dissection and prophylactic aortic surgery) in patients with Marfan syndrome.