Angiopoietin 2 regulates the transformation and integrity of lymphatic endothelial cell junctions

Primitive lymphatic vessels are remodeled into functionally specialized initial and collecting lymphatics during development. Lymphatic endothelial cell (LEC) junctions in initial lymphatics transform from a zipper-like to a button-like pattern during collecting vessel development, but what regulate...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:	Genes & development 2014-07, Vol.28 (14), p.1592-1603
Main Authors:	Zheng, Wei, Nurmi, Harri, Appak, Sila, Sabine, Amélie, Bovay, Esther, Korhonen, Emilia A, Orsenigo, Fabrizio, Lohela, Marja, D'Amico, Gabriela, Holopainen, Tanja, Leow, Ching Ching, Dejana, Elisabetta, Petrova, Tatiana V, Augustin, Hellmut G, Alitalo, Kari
Format:	Article
Language:	eng
Subjects:	Angiopoietin-2 - antagonists & inhibitors Angiopoietin-2 - genetics Angiopoietin-2 - metabolism Animals Cadherins - metabolism Embryo, Mammalian Endothelial Cells - cytology Endothelial Cells - metabolism Gene Deletion Intercellular Junctions - physiology Lymphangiogenesis - physiology Lymphoid Tissue - embryology Lymphoid Tissue - pathology Mice Mice, Inbred C57BL Phosphorylation Research Paper
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Summary:	Primitive lymphatic vessels are remodeled into functionally specialized initial and collecting lymphatics during development. Lymphatic endothelial cell (LEC) junctions in initial lymphatics transform from a zipper-like to a button-like pattern during collecting vessel development, but what regulates this process is largely unknown. Angiopoietin 2 (Ang2) deficiency leads to abnormal lymphatic vessels. Here we found that an ANG2-blocking antibody inhibited embryonic lymphangiogenesis, whereas endothelium-specific ANG2 overexpression induced lymphatic hyperplasia. ANG2 inhibition blocked VE-cadherin phosphorylation at tyrosine residue 685 and the concomitant formation of button-like junctions in initial lymphatics. The defective junctions were associated with impaired lymph uptake. In collecting lymphatics, adherens junctions were disrupted, and the vessels leaked upon ANG2 blockade or gene deletion. ANG2 inhibition also suppressed the onset of lymphatic valve formation and subsequent valve maturation. These data identify ANG2 as the first essential regulator of the functionally important interendothelial cell-cell junctions that form during lymphatic development.
ISSN:	0890-9369 1549-5477