Hyaluronic acid (HA) and CD44 in angiogenesis and endometriosis (EDT)

OLIVARES CN; RICCI AG; BARAÑAO RI; MENGER MD; ALANIZ L; MERESMAN GF

Jornada; XVI Jornadas Anuales de la Sociedad Argentina de Biologia; 2014

HA-CD44 interaction has been described in physiologic andpathologic conditions. Adherence, proliferation and angiogenesisare amongst the processes they promote. To study this interactionwe used different models in which we evaluated angiogenesis andEDT development. EDT is a benign disease that relies onangiogenesis. To study the effect of the HA-synthesis inhibitor 4-methylumbelliferone (4-MU) on angiogenesis we obtained aorticrings from Sprague Dawley male rats, cultured them for 6 dayswith 4-MU and then measured sprout growth. We also performedan in vivo assay using the skinfold chamber model (SCM) intowhich endometrial fragments were transplanted and monitored bymeans of intravital fluorescent microscopy at different time pointsfor: graft size, vascularized area (VA) and functional capillarydensity (FCD); cell proliferation, apoptosis and an endothelialmarker expression were evaluated; mice were daily treated ip with4-MU for 15 days. In addition, we induced EDT in CD44-/- (KO)and wild type (wt) mice by singeneic transplant of endometrialfragments from KO and wt mice. Animals were left untreated forone month. Lesion growth, VEGF content in peritoneal fluid andvon Willebrand factor (vW) expression were evaluated. 4-MUinhibited sprout growth in vitro. It also affected the VA, FCD andCD31 expression while proliferation and apoptosis wereunaffected in the SCM. Strikingly, bigger lesions developed inCD44-/- mice either with KO or wt transplanted tissue, but theywere less adhered. No differences in vW or VEGF were observed.More studies will be designed to elucidate the mechanismsinvolved in EDT; nevertheless, these results are promising in theidentification of a new target for angiogenesis.Área temática: REPRODUCCIÓN