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VE-Cadherin Is Required for Cardiac Lymphatic Maintenance and Signaling.

Natalie R Harris¹, Natalie R Nielsen¹, John B Pawlak¹

¹Department of Cell Biology and Physiology (N.R.H., N.R.N., J.B.P., K.R., D.S.S., D.M.D., N.P.N.-M., W.X., D.R., S.H.H., K.M.C.), University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Circulation Research

|November 18, 2021

Summary

Vascular endothelial cadherin (VE-cadherin) is crucial for cardiac lymphatic development and maintenance. Its loss disrupts lymphatic signaling but preserves cardiac function after injury.

Keywords:

adrenomedullin cadherins endothelial cells myocardial infarction vascular endothelial growth factor receptor

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Area of Science:

Cardiovascular Biology
Lymphatic System Development
Molecular Signaling

Background:

Vascular endothelial cadherin (VE-cadherin) plays varied roles in lymphatic vessels.
Its specific function in cardiac lymphatics and interaction with lymphangiogenic factors requires further investigation.

Purpose of the Study:

To determine the spatiotemporal functions of VE-cadherin in cardiac lymphatics.
To elucidate how VE-cadherin loss impacts prolymphangiogenic signaling pathways, including adrenomedullin and VEGF-C/VEGFR3.

Main Methods:

Utilized conditional knockout mice (Cdh5;Prox1CreER) to delete VE-cadherin in lymphatic endothelial cells across different life stages.
Assessed lymphatic architecture and function via immunostaining and lymphangiography.
Evaluated cardiac function post-myocardial infarction and analyzed cellular signaling pathways through in vitro knockdown experiments.

Main Results:

Embryonic VE-cadherin deletion led to dilated cardiac lymphatics with altered morphology.
Postnatal deletion caused lymphatic disassembly, while adult deletion resulted in regression of the epicardial lymphatic network and impaired lymphatic function.
Surprisingly, VE-cadherin deletion did not compromise cardiac function at baseline or after myocardial infarction.
Mechanistically, VE-cadherin loss caused VEGFR3 internalization, impairing VEGF-C and adrenomedullin signaling and downstream proliferation.

Conclusions:

VE-cadherin is essential for cardiac lymphatic development and maintenance by stabilizing prolymphangiogenic signaling nodes.
Despite its role in lymphatic integrity, VE-cadherin is not required for basal or injury-induced cardiac function.