Angiopoietin-2 (Ang2) is a ligand for the endothelial cell tyrosine kinase receptor Tie2 and counteracts blood vessel maturation/stability mediated by angiopoietin-1 (Ang1), the other known ligand of Tie2. Using degenerate oligonucleotides and reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction, we have screened bovine microvascular endothelial (BME), aortic, lymphatic, pulmonary artery, and transf...

A potent inhibitor of endothelial cell growth and neovascularization has previously been isolated from both bovine and human aorta. In an attempt to determine if the major cellular component of that tissue, smooth muscle cells, synthesized molecules with this activity, we studied the effects of serum-free conditioned medium from bovine aortic smooth muscle on the growth of cultured endothelial ...

Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) is a potent endothelial cell mitogen which mediates its effects by binding to tyrosine kinase receptors. We have characterized the VEGF-activated intracellular signal transduction pathway in bovine aortic endothelial cells and correlated this to its mitogenic effects. VEGF induced concentration- and time-dependent increases in protein kinase C (PKC) act...

The cytoprotective effects of erythropoietin (EPO) and an EPO-related nonerythropoietic analog, pyroglutamate helix B surface peptide (pHBSP), were investigated in an in vitro model of bovine aortic endothelial cell injury under normoxic (21% O2) and hypoxic (1% O2) conditions. The potential molecular mechanisms of these effects were also explored. Using a model of endothelial injury (the scrat...

BACKGROUND AND AIMS Hyperglycemia and diabetes are associated with increased formation of advanced glycation end products and enhanced oxidative stress, leading to the progression of diabetic vascular disease. We have investigated the mechanisms by which AGE-modified bovine albumin (AGE-BSA) induces reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation, leading to nuclear factor-erythroid 2-related factor (...

Many studies of the endothelium have assumed equivalence between cultured confluent cells and an endothelial lining in vivo. We compared gene expression of bovine aortic endothelial cells (BAECs) in culture versus freshly isolated cells from bovine aortas. Our technique of harvesting in vivo tissue yielded cells that were endothelial by the criteria of their containing von Willebrand factor (vW...

When bovine pulmonary artery endothelial cells are cultured in a medium supplemented with linoleic acid, their capacity to produce prostacyclin (PGI2) is reduced by about 60%. This reduction occurs when PGI2 formation is stimulated by the addition of either the calcium ionophore A23187 or arachidonic acid. In addition, supplementation with linoleic acid reduced the production of prostaglandin E...

To evaluate the acute effect of lovastatin on diabetic endothelial dysfunction, we examined this effect on the aortic rings of streptozotocin-diabetic rats. The endothelial function was assessed in aortic rings isolated from diabetic rats, 12 weeks after treatment with streptozotocin (45 mg/kg, i.p.). The concentration-response curve to acetylcholine (Ach) in the aortic rings precontracted with...