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Updated: Mar 19, 2026
Molecular Analysis of Endothelial-mesenchymal Transition Induced by Transforming Growth Factor-β Signaling
Published on: August 3, 2018
Mitral valve endothelial cells secrete osteoprotegerin during endothelial mesenchymal transition
Paola Songia1, Emanuela Branchetti2, Alessandro Parolari3
1Centro Cardiologico Monzino IRCCS, Milan, Italy; Università degli Studi di Milano, Dipartimento di Scienze Farmacologiche e Biomolecolari, Milan, Italy.
Aims:
Mitral valve prolapse (MVP) has a prevalence of 3% in the general population, affecting >176 million people worldwide. Despite this, little is known about the molecular and cellular mechanisms involved in the progression of MVP and surgical intervention is the only available option. In this study we investigated the role of osteoprotegerin (OPG) during endothelial to mesenchymal transition (EndMT) in MVP.
Methods And Results:
VECs and VICs were isolated from posterior mitral valve leaflets of patients undergoing mitral valve repair (n=25). Plasma was collected from 57 subjects (29 controls and 28 MVP patients). Overexpression of OPG during EndMT followed by autocrine effects characterised by reactive oxygen species increment and accelerated migration was documented. In addition, OPG increased VIC proliferation. Finally, OPG plasma levels were significantly higher in MVP patients compared to control subjects and the area under the ROC curve was 0.92.
Conclusion:
EndMT has been recognised as a possible pathological mechanism for MVP. For the first time, we report the involvement of OPG in cellular and molecular changes in MVP isolated cells. In addition, we detected elevated circulating OPG levels in MVP patients when compared to controls, which supports the hypothesis that OPG is involved in MVP development and progression.
