S-Adenosylhomocysteine (SAH) can induce endothelial dysfunction and activation, contributing to atherogenesis; however, its role in the activation of the inflammatory mediator NFkB has not been explored. Our aim was to determine the role of NFkB in SAH-induced activation of endothelial cells. Furthermore, we examined whether SAH, as a potent inhibitor of S-adenosylmethionine-dependent methyltransferases, suppresses the function of EZH2 methyltransferase to contribute to SAH-induced endothelial cell activation. We found that excess SAH increases the expression of adhesion molecules and cytokines in human coronary artery endothelial cells. Importantly, this up-regulation was suppressed in cells expressing a dominant negative form of the NFkB inhibitor, IkB. Moreover, SAH accumulation triggers the activation of both the canonical and non-canonical NFkB pathways, decreases EZH2, and reduces histone 3 lysine 27 trimethylation. EZH2 knockdown recapitulated the effects of excess SAH on endothelial activation, i.e., it induced NFkB activation and the subsequent up-regulation of adhesion molecules and cytokines. Our findings suggest that suppression of the epigenetic regulator EZH2 by excess SAH may contribute to NFkB activation and the consequent vascular inflammatory response. These studies unveil new targets of SAH regulation, demonstrating that EZH2 suppression and NFkB activation mediated by SAH accumulation may contribute to its adverse effects in the vasculature.

In order to establish a homing signal in the lung to recruit circulating stem cells for tissue repair, we formulated a nanoparticle, SDF-1α NP, by complexing SDF-1α with dextran sulfate and chitosan. The data show that SDF-1α was barely released from the nanoparticles over an extended period of time in vitro (3% in 7 days at 37°C); however, incorporated SDF-1α exhibited full chemotactic activity and receptor activation compared to its free form. The nanoparticles were not endocytosed after incubation with Jurkat cells. When aerosolized into the lungs of rats, SDF-1α NP displayed a greater retention time compared to free SDF-1α (64% vs. 2% remaining at 16 hr). In a rat model of monocrotaline-induced lung injury, SDF-1α NP, but not free form SDF-1α, was found to reduce pulmonary hypertension. These data suggest that the nanoparticle formulation protected SDF-1α from rapid clearance in the lung and sustained its biological function in vivo.

The adaptive response to hypoxia is mediated in large part by stabilization of the hypoxia-inducible factors, HIF-1α and HIF-2α. A hallmark of this response is the metabolic shift to decreased oxidative phosphorylation and increased glycolysis. We hypothesized that hypoxic responses would include a suppression of mitochondrial gene expression. We determined the effects of hypoxia on TFAM, a key mitochondrial transcription factor, in normal pulmonary artery endothelial cells. Hypoxia decreased gene expression of TFAM and that of its upstream regulator, the transcriptional co-activator PGC1β. Although HIF-1α and HIF-2α pathways both contributed to hypoxia-mediated PGC1β suppression, TFAM suppression was regulated solely by HIF-2α-dependent mechanisms. We found that HIF-2α suppresses TFAM by decreasing c-Myc expression. In addition, we show a role for c-Jun in this pathway, linking HIF-2α with attenuation of c-Jun activation. Taken together, these findings establish a new link between HIF-2α and MAPK-signaling that mediates the adaptive regulation of mitochondrial gene expression under low oxygen tension.