Embryonic Stem Cell Differentiation to Functional Arterial Endothelial Cells through Sequential Activation of ETV2 and NOTCH1 Signaling by HIF1α.

The generation of functional arterial endothelial cells (aECs) from embryonic stem cells (ESCs) holds great promise for vascular tissue engineering. However, the mechanisms underlying their generation and the potential of aECs in revascularizing ischemic tissue are not fully understood. Here, we observed that hypoxia exposure of mouse ESCs induced an initial phase of HIF1α-mediated upregulation of the transcription factor Etv2, which in turn induced the commitment to the EC fate.

Broad expression analysis of human ANTXR1/TEM8 transcripts reveals differential expression and novel splizce variants.

Tumor endothelial marker 8 (TEM8; ANTXR1) is one of two anthrax toxin receptors; the other is capillary morphogenesis gene 2 protein (CMG2; ANTXR2). TEM8 shows enhanced expression in certain tumor endothelia, and is thought to be a player in tumor vasculature formation. However, a comprehensive expression profile of individual TEM8 variants in normal or cancerous tissues is lacking.

Involvement of HGF/SF-Met signaling in prostate adenocarcinoma cells: evidence for alternative mechanisms leading to a metastatic phenotype in Pr-14c.

Background: Hepatocyte growth factor/scatter factor (HGF/SF) facilitates intercellular communication between the epithelial carcinoma and its surrounding stromal tissue during metastatic invasion through interaction with its proto-oncogenic receptor, Met, found on carcinoma cells. This study utilizes the C31/Tag transgenic mouse prostate cancer cell line model in an attempt to characterize the interaction between HGF/SF and Met on the metastatic potential of prostate cancer.

Methods: Exogenous HGF was supplied to the prostate adenocarcinoma cell line (Pr-14) and metastatic cell line (Pr-14c) to evaluate mitogenicity by proliferation assays, morphological characteristics on an extracellular matrix substrate, and motogenic properties using the scatter assay, invasion chambers, and zymogram studies to analyze secretory enzymes produced by the cell lines.