Related Experiment Video

Updated: Mar 17, 2026

Isolation of Human Primary Valve Cells for In vitro Disease Modeling

Isolation of Human Primary Valve Cells for In vitro Disease Modeling

Published on: April 16, 2021

Interleukin 18 promotes myofibroblast activation of valvular interstitial cells

Jingxin Zhou¹, Jinfu Zhu¹, Li Jiang²

¹Department of Cardiovascular Surgery, the First Affiliated Hospital, Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, Jiangsu Province, China.

International Journal of Cardiology

|July 22, 2016

Abstract

Background:

Calcific aortic valve disease is the main heart valve disease in the elderly. Valvular interstitial cells (VICs) play an important role in the process of valve calcification. Interleukin 18 (IL-18) is expressed in stenosis aortic valves and is positively related with the clinical severity of aortic stenosis. However, the role of IL-18 in aortic valve calcification remains unclear. This study examined whether IL-18 promotes myofibroblast and/or osteoblast transdifferention of VICs. Porcine VICs were isolated and treated with recombinant porcine IL-18.

Methods:

Porcine VICs were cultured and treated with IL-18. Gene and protein expression of myofibroblastic and osteoblastic markers were tested and nuclear factor κB (NF-κB) phosphorylation was also analyzed. Alkaline phosphatase (ALP) staining and activity assay were also performed.

Results:

Our experiments demonstrated that IL-18 significantly enhanced alpha-smooth muscle actin (α-SMA) gene and protein expression. IL-18 treatment also promoted the expression of osteopontin (OPN) and runt-related transcription factor 2 (Runx2) mRNA, although OPN and Runx2 protein expressions were not changed. IL-18 could induce ALP activity in the presence of conditioning medium. We also demonstrated that IL-18 markedly enhanced NF-κB p65 phosphorylation in VICs.

Conclusions:

Together these results suggest that IL-18 promotes the myofibroblast differentiation of VICs and accelerates calcification in the presence of conditioning medium via the NF-κB pathway.

Keywords:

Interleukin 18 Myofibroblast Valvular heart disease Valvular interstitial cells α-Smooth muscle actin

More Related Videos

Isolation of Primary Myofibroblasts from Mouse and Human Colon Tissue

Isolation of Primary Myofibroblasts from Mouse and Human Colon Tissue

Published on: October 12, 2013

Adoptive Transfer of IL-33-Stimulated Macrophages into Bleomycin-Induced Mouse Models to Study Their Effect on Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis In Vivo

Adoptive Transfer of IL-33-Stimulated Macrophages into Bleomycin-Induced Mouse Models to Study Their Effect on Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis In Vivo

Published on: May 5, 2023

Related Concept Videos

T Cell Types and Functions

T Cell Types and Functions

When T cells with CD4 markers are activated, they give rise to two types of effector cells: helper T cells and regulatory T cells. Meanwhile, T cells with CD8 markers differentiate into effector cytotoxic T cells. The differentiation of CD4 T cells into helper T cell subsets, such as Th1, Th2, and Th17 cells, is dependent on the antigen type, antigen-presenting cell, and regulatory cytokines.
Th1 cells stimulate dendritic cells to express necessary co-stimulatory molecules on their surfaces for...

Inflammatory Response I: Vascular and Cellular

Inflammatory Response I: Vascular and Cellular

The inflammatory response is the body's defense against infection, injury, or irritation from bacteria, trauma, toxins, or heat. Inflammation helps locate and destroy pathogens and remove damaged tissue elements to heal the body. During this initial phase, fluid, blood products, and nutrients migrate to the injured area, resulting in redness, heat, swelling, ache, and loss of function. Moreover, signs of systemic inflammation include fever, increased WBC count, malaise, anorexia, nausea,...

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Halogen-Free Solvent and Additive-Processed Organic Solar Cells Achieving 20.50% Binary Efficiency.

Advanced materials (Deerfield Beach, Fla.)·2026

Electronic-resonance enhanced molecule for perovskite solar cells.

Nature·2026

Site-Specific Carbazole-Bridged Isomeric Guests Enable Organic Solar Cells with 21.10% Efficiency and Reduced Non-Radiative Recombination.

Advanced materials (Deerfield Beach, Fla.)·2026

Two-Dimensional Metal-Organic Frameworks as Charge Extraction Media Enabling Binary Organic Solar Cells With 20.70% Efficiency.

Angewandte Chemie (International ed. in English)·2026

Correction: Huang et al. Constructing Molybdenum Phosphide@Cobalt Phosphide Heterostructure Nanoarrays on Nickel Foam as a Bifunctional Electrocatalyst for Enhanced Overall Water Splitting. Molecules 2023, 28, 3647.

Molecules (Basel, Switzerland)·2025

Bagasse-Derived Hard Carbon Anode with a Synergistic Sodium Storage Mechanism Induced by Temperature Gradient for High-Performance Sodium-Ion Batteries.

Small (Weinheim an der Bergstrasse, Germany)·2025

See all related articles