Fas/FADD-mediated activation of a specific program of inflammatory gene expression in vascular smooth muscle cells

Apoptosis of smooth muscle cells is a common feature of vascular lesions but its pathophysiological significance is not known. We demonstrate that signals initiated by regulated Fas-associated death domain protein overexpression in rat vascular smooth muscle cells in the carotid artery induce expression of monocyte-chemoattractant protein-1 and interleukin-8, and cause massive immigration of macrophages in vivo. These chemokines, and a specific set of other pro-inflammatory genes, are also upregulated in human vascular smooth muscle cells during Fas-induced apoptosis, in part through a process that requires interleukin-1alpha activation. Induction of a pro-inflammatory program by apoptotic vascular smooth muscle cells may thus contribute to the pathogenesis of vascular disease.