Endothelial-to-Mesenchymal Transition Contributes to Accelerated Atherosclerosis in Hutchinson-Gilford Progeria Syndrome

BACKGROUND: Atherosclerosis is the main medical problem in Hutchinson-Gilford progeria syndrome, a rare premature aging disorder caused by the mutant lamin-A protein progerin. Recently, we found that limiting progerin expression to vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs) is sufficient to hasten atherosclerosis and death in Apoe -deficient mice. However, the impact of progerin-driven VSMC defects on endothelial cells (ECs) remained unclear. METHODS: Apoe - or Ldlr -deficient C57BL/6J mice with ubiquitous, VSMC-, EC- or myeloid-specific progerin expression fed a normal or high-fat diet were used to study endothelial phenotype during Hutchinson-Gilford progeria syndrome–associated atherosclerosis. Endothelial permeability to low-density lipoproteins was assessed by intravenous injection of fluorescently labeled human low-density lipoprotein and confocal microscopy analysis of the aorta. Leukocyte recruitment to the aortic wall was evaluated by en face immunofluorescence. Endothelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EndMT) was assessed by quantitative polymerase chain reaction and RNA sequencing in the aortic intima and by immunofluorescence in aortic root sections. TGFβ (transforming growth factor β) signaling was analyzed by multiplex immunoassay in serum, by Western blot in the aorta, and by immunofluorescence in aortic root sections. The therapeutic benefit of TGFβ1/SMAD3 pathway inhibition was evaluated in mice by intraperitoneal injection of SIS3 (specific inhibitor of SMAD3), and vascular phenotype was assessed by Oil Red O staining, histology, and immunofluorescence in the aorta and the aortic root. RESULTS: Both ubiquitous and VSMC-specific progerin expression in Apoe -null mice provoked alterations in aortic ECs, including increased permeability to low-density lipoprotein and leukocyte recruitment. Atherosclerotic lesions in these progeroid mouse models, but not in EC- and myeloid-specific progeria models, contained abundant cells combining endothelial and mesenchymal features, indicating extensive EndMT triggered by dysfunctional VSMCs. Accordingly, the intima of ubiquitous and VSMC-specific progeroid models at the onset of atherosclerosis presented increased expression of EndMT-linked genes, especially those specific to fibroblasts and extracellular matrix. Aorta in both models showed activation of the TGFβ1/SMAD3 pathway, a major trigger of EndMT, and treatment of VSMC-specific progeroid mice with SIS3 alleviated the aortic phenotype. CONCLUSIONS: Progerin-induced VSMC alterations promote EC dysfunction and EndMT through TGFβ1/SMAD3, identifying this process as a candidate target for Hutchinson-Gilford progeria syndrome treatment. These findings also provide insight into the complex role of EndMT during atherogenesis.