The association of neuron-derived orphan receptor 1 with pulmonary vascular remodeling in COPD patients

Chronic hypoxia-induced pulmonary vascular remodeling is a feature of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). Our previous reports indicate that neuron-derived orphan receptor 1 (NOR1) promoted pulmonary smooth muscle cell proliferation in vitro. But it remains unclear whether NOR1 participated into hypoxia-induced pulmonary vascular remodeling in COPD patients.

For this study, we collected peripheral lung tissues of 26 male COPD patients with or without hypoxemia. We detected the pulmonary vascular remodeling in all the peripheral lung tissues. Primary human pulmonary arterial smooth muscle cells were also cultured in vitro and stimulated with hypoxia or normoxia. Cell proliferation and protein levels were detected.

COPD patients with hypoxemia showed significantly enlarged pulmonary vessels wall thickness and increased protein levels of HIF-1α, smooth muscle actin, cyclin D1, and NOR1 when compared with those in normoxic patients. Moreover, hypoxia induced human pulmonary arterial smooth muscle cell proliferation and NOR1 overexpression in vitro. The plasmid-based NOR1 gene overexpression markedly promoted DNA synthesis and proliferation in hypoxia or normoxic cells. Human NOR1 gene-specific siRNA intensively suppressed DNA synthesis and proliferation. Transfection of NOR1 overexpression plasmid raised cyclin D1 protein levels, which could be significant inhibited by NOR1-specific siRNA or a CDK4/6 inhibitor PD0332991.

We concluded that NOR1 upregulation is associated with hypoxia-induced pulmonary vascular remodeling in COPD via promoting human pulmonary arterial smooth muscle cell proliferation.