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Human endothelial progenitor cells isolated from COPD patients are dysfunctional

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Abstract

Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of morbidity and mortality in patients with moderate-to-severe chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). More than 44% of these patients present with generalized atherosclerosis at autopsy. It is accepted that endothelial progenitor cells (EPCs) participate in the repair of dysfunctional endothelium and thus protects against atherosclerosis. However, whether COPD affects the repairing capacity of EPCs is unknown. Therefore, the objective of this study was to determine whether and how EPCs are involved in the vascular repair process in patients with COPD. In our study, EPCs from 25 COPD and 16 control patients were isolated by Ficoll density-gradient centrifugation and identified using fluorescence activated cell sorting. Transwell Migratory Assay was performed to determine the number of EPC colony-forming units and the adherent capacity late-EPCs to human umbilical vein endothelial cells. Following arterial damage in NOD/SCID mice, the number of EPCs incorporated at the injured vascular site was determined using a fluorescence microscope. We found that the number of EPC clusters and cell migration, as well as the expression of CXCR4, was significantly decreased in patients with COPD. Additionally, the number of late-EPCs adherent to HUVEC tubules was significantly reduced, and fewer VEGFR2+-staining cells were incorporated into the injured site in COPD patients. Our study demonstrates that EPC capacity of repair was affected in COPD patients, which may contribute to altered vascular endothelium in this patient population.

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Acknowledgments

We thank Dr. Lihua Liu for technical assistance, and Dr. Weiping Tan, Dr. Shuxiang Zhang and the staff of nurses in respiratory department of the First Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-sen University for collecting clinical cases, and Prof Zhengyu Dong for the preparation of the manuscript and cover letter.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Respiratory Department, The First Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-sen University, 58 Zhongshan Road, Guangzhou, 51008, Guangdong Province, People’s Republic of China

    Xiaoran Liu & Canmao Xie

  2. Respiratory Department, The Affiliated Hospital of Hainan Medical College, Xueyuan Road, Haikou, Hainan Province, People’s Republic of China

    Xiaoran Liu

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  1. Xiaoran Liu
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  2. Canmao Xie
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Correspondence to Canmao Xie.

Additional information

Xiaoran Liu and Canmao Xie authors contributed equally to this work.

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Liu, X., Xie, C. Human endothelial progenitor cells isolated from COPD patients are dysfunctional. Mol Cell Biochem 363, 53–63 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11010-011-1157-y

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11010-011-1157-y

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