Postnatal lymphatic partitioning from the blood vasculature in the small intestine requires fasting-induced adipose factor

Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2007 Jan 9;104(2):606-11. doi: 10.1073/pnas.0605957104. Epub 2007 Jan 3.

Abstract

Lymphatic vessels develop from specialized venous endothelial cells. Using knockout mice, we found that fasting-induced adipose factor (Fiaf) is required for functional partitioning of postnatal intestinal lymphatic and blood vessels. In wild-type animals, levels of intestinal Fiaf expression rise during the first postnatal day and peak at day 2, which coincides with the onset of the lymphatico-venous partitioning abnormality in Fiaf-/- mutants on a mixed 129/SvJ:C57BL/6 genetic background. Fiaf deficiency is not associated with disruption of the blood vasculature or with lymphatic endothelial recruitment of smooth muscle cells. We identified Prox1, a critical regulator of lymphangiogenesis, as a downstream target for Fiaf signaling in the intestinal lymphatic endothelium. This organ-specific lymphovascular abnormality can be rescued by allowing embryonic Fiaf-/- intestinal isografts to develop in Fiaf+/+ recipients.

Publication types

  • Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural
  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Angiopoietin-Like Protein 4
  • Angiopoietins
  • Animals
  • Animals, Newborn
  • Blood Proteins / deficiency
  • Blood Proteins / genetics
  • Blood Proteins / physiology*
  • Genes, Homeobox
  • Homeodomain Proteins / physiology
  • Intestine, Small / blood supply*
  • Intestine, Small / growth & development*
  • Intestine, Small / transplantation
  • Lymphangiogenesis / genetics
  • Lymphangiogenesis / physiology
  • Lymphatic Vessels / anatomy & histology*
  • Mice
  • Mice, Knockout
  • Microcirculation / growth & development
  • Transplantation, Isogeneic
  • Tumor Suppressor Proteins

Substances

  • Angiopoietin-Like Protein 4
  • Angiopoietins
  • Angptl4 protein, mouse
  • Blood Proteins
  • Homeodomain Proteins
  • Tumor Suppressor Proteins
  • prospero-related homeobox 1 protein