Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jun 14, 2026

Analysis of Combinatorial miRNA Treatments to Regulate Cell Cycle and Angiogenesis
Published on: March 30, 2019
MicroRNAs are necessary for vascular smooth muscle growth, differentiation, and function
Sebastian Albinsson1, Yajaira Suarez, Athanasia Skoura
1Department of Pharmacology, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT 06520, USA.
Objective:
Regulation of vascular smooth muscle (VSM) proliferation and contractile differentiation is an important factor in vascular development and subsequent cardiovascular diseases. Recently, microRNAs (miRNAs) have been shown to regulate fundamental cellular processes in a number of cell types, but the integrated role of miRNAs in VSM in blood vessels is unknown. Here, we investigated the role of miRNAs in VSM by deleting the rate-limiting enzyme in miRNA synthesis, Dicer.
Methods And Results:
Deletion of Dicer in VSM results in late embryonic lethality at embryonic day 16 to 17, associated with extensive internal hemorrhage. The loss of VSM Dicer results in dilated, thin-walled blood vessels caused by a reduction in cellular proliferation. In addition, blood vessels from VSM-deleted Dicer mice exhibited impaired contractility because of a loss of contractile protein markers. We found this effect to be associated with a loss of actin stress fibers and partly rescued by overexpression of microRNA (miR)-145 or myocardin.
Conclusions:
Dicer-dependent miRNAs are important for VSM development and function by regulating proliferation and contractile differentiation.
Related Concept Videos
Regulation of Angiogenesis and Blood Supply
MicroRNAs
MicroRNAs
MicroRNAs
Role Of Notch Signalling In Intestinal Stem Cell Renewal
Direct cell-to-cell contact is needed for the activation of Notch signaling. The signal is initiated when a notch ligand binds to a receptor on an adjacent cell, also...
Mechanism of Angiogenesis
