The BET Protein Inhibitor Apabetalone Rescues Diabetes-Induced Impairment of Angiogenic Response by Epigenetic Regulation of Thrombospondin-1

Shafeeq Ahmed Mohammed, Mattia Albiero, Samuele Ambrosini, Era Gorica, Gergely Karsai, Carlo Maria Caravaggi , Stefano MAsi, Giovanni Giacomo Camici, Florian Wenzl , Vincenzo Calderone, Paolo R Madeddu, Sebastiano Sciarretta, Christian M Matter, Gaia Spinetti, Thomas Lusher, Frank Ruschitzka, Sarah Costantino, Gia Paolo Fadini, Francesco Paneni*

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticle (Academic Journal)peer-review

24 Citations (Scopus)
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Abstract

Aims: Therapeutic modulation of blood vessel growth holds promise for the prevention of limb ischemia in diabetic (DM) patients with peripheral artery disease (PAD). Epigenetic changes, namely posttranslational histone modifications, participate in angiogenic response suggesting that chromatin-modifying drugs could be beneficial in this setting. Apabetalone (APA), a selective inhibitor of bromodomain (BRD) and extra-terminal (BET) proteins, prevents BRD4 interactions with chromatin thus modulating transcriptional programs in different organs. We sought to investigate whether APA affects angiogenic response in diabetes.

Results: As compared to vehicle, APA restored tube formation and migration in human aortic endothelial cells (HAECs) exposed to high glucose (HG) levels. Expression profiling of angiogenesis genes showed that APA prevents HG-induced upregulation of the anti-angiogenic molecule Thrombospondin-1 (THBS1). ChIP-seq and chromatin immunoprecipitation (ChIP) assays in HG-treated HAECs showed the enrichment of both BRD4 and active marks (H3K27ac) on THBS1 promoter, whereas BRD4 inhibition by APA prevented chromatin accessibility and THBS1 transcription. Mechanistically, we show that THBS1 inhibits angiogenesis by suppressing VEGFA signaling, while APA prevents these detrimental changes. In diabetic mice with hindlimb ischemia, epigenetic editing by APA restored THSB1/VEGFA axis thus improving limb vascularization and perfusion as compared to vehicle-treated animals. Finally, epigenetic regulation of THSB1 by BRD4/H3K27ac was also reported in DM patients with PAD as compared to non-diabetic controls.

Innovation: This is the first study showing that BET protein inhibition by APA restores angiogenic response in experimental diabetes.

Conclusions: Our findings set the stage for preclinical studies and exploratory clinical trials testing APA in diabetic PAD.
Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)667-684
Number of pages18
JournalAntioxidants and Redox Signaling
Volume36
Issue number10-12
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 19 Apr 2022

Bibliographical note

Funding Information:
This work was supported by the Swiss National Science Foundation (No. 310030_197557), the Swiss Heart Foundation (No. FF19045), the Stiftung für wissenschaftliche For-schung, the Olga Mayenfisch Foundation, the Swiss Life Foundation, the Kurt und Senta-Hermann Stiftung, the EMDO Stiftung, and the Schweizerische Diabetes-Stiftung (to Francesco Paneni); the Holcim Foundation and the Swiss Heart Foundation (to Sarah Costantino). Samuele Ambrosini and Shafeeq A. Mohammed are the recipients of a For-schungskredit Candoc grant from the University of Zürich. Financial support was also obtained from the Italian Ministry of Health, Ricerca Corrente to the IRCCS MultiMedica (to Gaia Spinetti). Prof. Ruschitzka has not received personal payments by pharmaceutical companies or device manufacturers in the last 3 years (remuneration for the time spent in activities, such as participation as steering committee member of clinical trials and member of the Pfizer Research Award selection committee in Switzerland, were made directly to the University of Zurich). The Department of Cardiology (University Hospital of Zurich/University of Zurich) reports research-, educational-and/or travel grants from Abbott, Amgen, Astra Zeneca, Bayer, Berlin Heart, B. Braun, Biosense Webster, Biosensors Europe AG, Biotronik, BMS, Boehringer Ingelheim, Boston Scientific, Bracco, Cardinal Health Switzerland, Corteria, Daiichi, Diatools AG, Edwards Lifesciences, Guidant Europe NV (BS), Hamilton Health Sciences, Kaneka Corporation, Kantar, Labormedizinisches Zentrum, Medtronic, MSD, Mundipharma Medical Company, Novartis, Novo Nordisk, Orion, Pfizer, Quintiles Switzerland Sarl, Sahajanand IN, Sanofi, Sarstedt AG, Servier, SIS Medical, SSS International Clinical Research, Terumo Deutschland, Trama Solutions, V-Wave, Vascular Medical, Vifor, Wissens Plus, ZOLL. The research and educational grants do not impact on Prof. Ruschitzka’s personal remuneration.

Funding Information:
This work was supported by the Swiss National Science Foundation (No. 310030-197557), the Swiss Heart Foundation (No. FF19045), the Stiftung f? r wissenschaftliche Forschung, the Olga Mayenfisch Foundation, the Swiss Life Foundation, the Kurt und Senta-Hermann Stiftung, the EMDO Stiftung, and the Schweizerische Diabetes-Stiftung (to Francesco Paneni); the Holcim Foundation and the Swiss Heart Foundation (to Sarah Costantino). Samuele Ambrosini and Shafeeq A. Mohammed are the recipients of a Forschungskredit Candoc grant from the University of Z?rich. Financial support was also obtained from the Italian Ministry of Health, Ricerca Corrente to the IRCCS MultiMedica (to Gaia Spinetti). Prof. Ruschitzka has not received personal payments by pharmaceutical companies or device manufacturers in the last 3 years (remuneration for the time spent in activities, such as participation as steering committee member of clinical trials and member of the Pfizer Research Award selection committee in Switzerland, were made directly to the University of Zurich). The Department of Cardiology (University Hospital of Zurich/University of Zurich) reports research-, educational- and/or travel grants from Abbott, Amgen, Astra Zeneca, Bayer, Berlin Heart, B. Braun, Biosense Webster, Biosensors Europe AG, Biotronik, BMS, Boehringer Ingelheim, Boston Scientific, Bracco, Cardinal Health Switzerland, Corteria, Daiichi, Diatools AG, Edwards Lifesciences, Guidant Europe NV (BS), Hamilton Health Sciences, Kaneka Corporation, Kantar, Labormedizinisches Zentrum, Medtronic, MSD, Mundipharma Medical Company, Novartis, Novo Nordisk, Orion, Pfizer, Quintiles Switzerland Sarl, Sahajanand IN, Sanofi, Sarstedt AG, Servier, SIS Medical, SSS International Clinical Research, Terumo Deutschland, Trama Solutions, V- Wave, Vascular Medical, Vifor, Wissens Plus, ZOLL. The research and educational grants do not impact on Prof. Ruschitzka's personal remuneration.

Publisher Copyright:
Copyright © 2022, Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers 2022.

Keywords

  • apabetalone
  • BET inhibitors
  • peripheral artery disease
  • diabetes
  • epigenetics
  • angiogenesis

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