Background: The major aim of this study is to investigate whether CDC6 (cell division cycle 6), a replication origin recognition complex component, plays a role in retinal neovascularization, and if so, to explore the underlying mechanisms.
Methods: In this study, we used a variety of approaches including cellular and moleculer biological methodologies as well as global and tissue-specific knockout mice in combination with an oxygen-induced retinopathy model to study the role of CDC6 in retinal neovascularization.
Results: VEGFA (vascular endothelial growth factor A)-induced CDC6 expression in a time-dependent manner in human retinal microvascular endothelial cells. In addition, VEGFA-induced CDC6 expression was dependent on PLCβ3 (phospholipase Cβ3)-mediated NFATc1 (nuclear factor of activated T cells c1) activation. Furthermore, while siRNA-mediated depletion of PLCβ3, NFATc1, or CDC6 levels blunted VEGFA-induced human retinal microvascular endothelial cell angiogenic events such as proliferation, migration, sprouting, and tube formation, CDC6 overexpression rescued these effects in NFATc1-deficient mouse retinal microvascular endothelial cells. In accordance with these observations, global knockdown of PLCβ3 or endothelial cell-specific deletion of NFATc1 or siRNA-mediated depletion of CDC6 levels substantially inhibited oxygen-induced retinopathy-induced retinal sprouting and neovascularization. In addition, retroviral-mediated overexpression of CDC6 rescued oxygen-induced retinopathy-induced retinal neovascularization from inhibition in PLCβ3 knockout mice and in endothelial cell-specific NFATc1-deficient mice.
Conclusions: The above observations clearly reveal that PLCβ3-mediated NFATc1 activation-dependent CDC6 expression plays a crucial role in VEGFA/oxygen-induced retinopathy-induced retinal neovascularization.
Keywords: endothelial cell; knockout mice; origin recognition complex; oxygen; retinal neovascularization.