Shi-wen, X;
Liu, SX;
Eastwood, M;
Sonnylal, S;
Denton, CP;
Abraham, DJ;
Leask, A;
(2009)
Rac Inhibition Reverses the Phenotype of Fibrotic Fibroblasts.
PLOS ONE
, 4
(10)
, Article e7438. 10.1371/journal.pone.0007438.
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Abstract
Background: Fibrosis, the excessive deposition of scar tissue by fibroblasts, is one of the largest groups of diseases for which there is no therapy. Fibroblasts from lesional areas of scleroderma patients possess elevated abilities to contract matrix and produce alpha-smooth muscle actin (alpha-SMA), type I collagen and CCN2 (connective tissue growth factor, CTGF). The basis for this phenomenon is poorly understood, and is a necessary prerequisite for developing novel, rational anti-fibrotic strategies.Methods and Findings: Compared to healthy skin fibroblasts, dermal fibroblasts cultured from lesional areas of scleroderma (SSc) patients possess elevated Rac activity. NSC23766, a Rac inhibitor, suppressed the persistent fibrotic phenotype of lesional SSc fibroblasts. NSC23766 caused a decrease in migration on and contraction of matrix, and alpha-SMA, type I collagen and CCN2 mRNA and protein expression. SSc fibroblasts possessed elevated Akt phosphorylation, which was also blocked by NSC23766. Overexpression of rac1 in normal fibroblasts induced matrix contraction and alpha-SMA, type I collagen and CCN2 mRNA and protein expression. Rac1 activity was blocked by PI3kinase/Akt inhibition. Basal fibroblast activity was not affected by NSC23766.Conclusion: Rac inhibition may be considered as a novel treatment for the fibrosis observed in SSc.
| Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Title: | Rac Inhibition Reverses the Phenotype of Fibrotic Fibroblasts |
| Open access status: | An open access version is available from UCL Discovery |
| DOI: | 10.1371/journal.pone.0007438 |
| Publisher version: | http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0007438 |
| Language: | English |
| Additional information: | © 2009 Shiwen et al. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited. A.L. is supported by grants from the Canadian Foundation for Innovation and the Canadian Institutes of Health Research and the Ontario Thoracic Society. D.J.A. and C.P.D. are supported by the Arthritis Research Campaign and the Scleroderma Society. The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript. |
| Keywords: | SMALL-MOLECULE INHIBITOR, FOCAL ADHESION KINASE, SCLERODERMA FIBROBLASTS, SYSTEMIC-SCLEROSIS, GROWTH-FACTOR, RHO GTPASES, TGF-BETA, IN-VIVO, LUNG FIBROBLASTS, RATIONAL DESIGN |
| UCL classification: | UCL UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Medical Sciences UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Medical Sciences > Div of Medicine UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Medical Sciences > Div of Medicine > Inflammation |
| URI: | https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/78347 |
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