Protein kinase C-delta regulates migration and proliferation of vascular smooth muscle cells through the extracellular signal-regulated kinase 1/2.

Background: Smooth muscle cell (SMC) migration and proliferation are early and crucial events in the pathogenesis of intimal hyperplasia, the primary cause of restenosis after vascular intervention. We tested the hypothesis that protein kinase C-delta (PKCdelta), a ubiquitously expressed intracellular protein kinase, regulates vascular SMC proliferation and migration.

Methods: Exogenous PKCdelta was expressed in cultured SMCs via stable transfection or adenovirus-mediated gene transfer.