PLX287295

GSE80819: Transcriptome analysis of ECFCs treated with GSK-343 and Panobinostat

• Organsim human
• Type RNASEQ
• Target gene
• Project ARCHS4

Human endothelial colony-forming cells (ECFCs) represent one of the most promising sources of adult stem cells for vascular regeneration after ischemia. Yet, the molecular mechanism underlying the unique properties of these cells to repair damaged blood vessels remains unclear, and new strategies to improve their regenerative function are needed. Here, we demonstrate that ex vivo treatment of ECFCs with a combination of epigenetic drugs (i.e. the histone H3K27 demethylase inhibitor GSK-343 and the histone deacetylase inhibitor panobinostat) improves the migration of these cells and their capacity to form capillary-like networks while also increasing their resistance to serum starvation-induced apoptosis. Furthermore, the kinetic of blood flow recovery is significantly increased upon transplantation of drug-treated ECFCs in a pre-clinical model of hind-limb ischemia. Gene expression profiling by RNA-sequencing reveals that these effects are mediated through the simultaneous activation of several major pro-angiogenic signaling pathways including VEGFR, CXCR4, WNT, NOTCH and SHH. At the molecular level, we provide evidence that the two drugs work through complementary mechanisms that entail the resolving of bivalently marked genes characterized by the presence of both negative (H3K27me3) and positive (H3K4me3 and H3-Ac) histone modifications to create a transcriptionally permissive chromatin environment. Thus, ex vivo treatment with epigenetic drugs increases the vascular repair properties of ECFCs through transient activation of major pro-angiogenic signaling pathways. SOURCE: Alphonse Chu (alchu@ohri.ca) - Ottawa Hospital Research Institute