Effects of hypophysectomy on vascular insulin-like growth factor-I gene expression after balloon denudation in rats

Insulin-like growth factor-I (IGF-I) is a widely distributed mediator of the growth promoting effects of growth hormone (GH). We sought to determine whether the relationship between GH and IGF-I extends to the vascular system, where IGF-I is proposed to participate in the process of neointimal proliferation after balloon denudation. We show that in hypophysectomized rats basal aortic IGF-I mRNA is one-tenth that of normal rats and is increased after balloon denudation. The induction peaks at 7 days after balloon denudation at about 10-fold control levels, similar to normal rats. Treatment with GH restores basal IGF-I mRNA content to approximately half that of normal rats, without further increase in the relative magnitude of induction after balloon denudation. This local induction of IGF-I gene expression in the vessel wall following injury might explain why neointimal proliferation is not inhibited more profoundly after hypophysectomy.