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Updated: Jun 22, 2026

A Cell Culture Model of Resistance Arteries
Published on: September 8, 2017
Coupling factor 6-induced prostacyclin inhibition is enhanced in vascular smooth muscle cells from spontaneously
Tomohiro Osanai1, Hirofumi Tomita, Masahiro Yamada
1Department of Cardiology, Hirosaki University Graduate School of Medicine, Hirosaki, Japan. osanait@cc.hirosaki-u.ac.jp
Insights
Coupling factor 6 (CF6) suppresses prostacyclin generation in vascular smooth muscle cells. This effect is amplified in spontaneously hypertensive rats due to increased CF6 production and sensitivity, impacting vascular tone.
Area of Science:
- Cardiovascular Physiology
- Vascular Biology
- Molecular Medicine
Background:
- Coupling factor 6 (CF6) is known to reduce endothelial prostacyclin production.
- The specific role of CF6 in resistance arterioles, crucial for vascular tone, remains unclear.
- Vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs) are key regulators of vascular tone.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the impact of endogenous and exogenous CF6 on prostacyclin generation in cultured VSMCs.
- To determine the role of CF6 in resistance arterioles of spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHRs) compared to Wistar-Kyoto (WKY) rats.
Main Methods:
- Cultured mesenteric resistance arteriole VSMCs from SHRs and WKY rats.
- Measured CF6 gene expression, mRNA degradation rates, and protein release.
- Assessed prostacyclin generation and arachidonic acid release.
- Utilized CF6 antibodies, tyrosine kinase inhibitors (PP1), and receptor blockers (ADP, efrapeptin, anti-ATP synthase antibody).
Main Results:
- SHR-derived VSMCs exhibited significantly higher CF6 gene expression and release compared to WKY rats.
- Prostacyclin generation was lower in SHR VSMCs but restored by CF6 neutralization.
- Exogenous CF6 dose-dependently suppressed arachidonic acid release, with a greater effect in SHRs.
- CF6-induced suppression of prostacyclin was blocked by PP1, ADP, efrapeptin, and anti-ATP synthase antibody.
Conclusions:
- CF6 suppresses prostacyclin generation in resistance arteriole VSMCs via autocrine/paracrine mechanisms.
- Enhanced CF6 overproduction and hyperresponsiveness contribute to its elevated role in SHRs.
- These findings highlight CF6's significance in regulating vascular tone and its potential role in hypertension.
Objectives:
Coupling factor 6 (CF6) attenuates the endothelial generation of prostacyclin. However, the role of CF6 in the resistance arteriole that is directly related to vascular tone is not determined yet. We investigated the effect of endogenous and exogenous CF6 on prostacyclin generation in cultured vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs).
Methods And Results:
We cultured resistance arteriole VSMCs from the mesenteric artery network of spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHRs, n = 8) and Wistar-Kyoto rats (WKY, n = 8) by enzymatic method. The gene expression of CF6 was higher by 76 +/- 24% in SHR-derived VSMCs compared with WKY rat-derived VSMCs (P < 0.05) concomitant with the reduced degradation rate of CF6 mRNA. The release of CF6 in SHRs was higher than that in WKY rats (11.0 +/- 0.8 vs. 3.8 +/- 0.4 pg/microg protein, P < 0.05). Prostacyclin generation was attenuated in mesenteric arteriolar VSMCs from SHRs compared with those from WKY rats, but it was restored by neutralization of CF6 with its antibody. Exogenous administration of CF6 suppressed arachidonic acid release in a dose-dependent manner, and it was greater in SHRs than in WKY rats. Pretreatment with PP1, an inhibitor of tyrosine kinase c-Src, or receptor blockers such as ADP, efrapeptin, and an antibody to beta-subunit of ATP synthase blocked CF6-induced decrease in prostacyclin generation.
Conclusion:
These data suggest that CF6 suppresses prostacyclin generation in resistance arteriole VSMCs in an autocrine or paracrine fashion, and it is enhanced in SHRs by the overproduction of CF6 and the hyperresponsiveness to CF6.
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