IMR Press / FBL / Volume 28 / Issue 11 / DOI: 10.31083/j.fbl2811277
Open Access Original Research
Inhibition of PFKFB3 Expression Stimulates Macrophage-Mediated Lymphangiogenesis Post-Acute Myocardial Infarction
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1 State Key Laboratory of Modern Chinese Medicine, Tianjin University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, 301617 Tianjin, China
2 Department of Cardiology, Tianjin Chest Hospital, 300222 Tianjin, China
3 Tianjin Key Laboratory of Cardiovascular Emergency and Critical Care, Tianjin Municipal Science and Technology Bureau, Tianjin Chest Hospital, 300222 Tianjin, China
*Correspondence: fengchao@nankai.edu.cn (Chao Feng); fjptj666@163.com (Jinping Feng)
Front. Biosci. (Landmark Ed) 2023, 28(11), 277; https://doi.org/10.31083/j.fbl2811277
Submitted: 19 April 2023 | Revised: 25 July 2023 | Accepted: 8 August 2023 | Published: 3 November 2023
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Myocardial Ischaemia–Reperfusion Injury)
Copyright: © 2023 The Author(s). Published by IMR Press.
This is an open access article under the CC BY 4.0 license.
Abstract

Background: The dilation of lymphatic vessels plays a critical role in maintaining heart function, while a lack thereof could contribute to heart failure (HF), and subsequently to an acute myocardial infarction (AMI). Macrophages participate in the induction of lymphangiogenesis by secreting vascular endothelial cell growth factor C (VEGF-C), although the precise mechanism remains unclear. Methods: Intramyocardial injections of adeno-associated viruses (AAV9) to inhibit the expression of VEGFR3 (VEGFR3 shRNA) or promote the expression of VEGFR3 (VEGFR3 ORF) in the heart; Myh6-mCherry B6 D2-tg mice and flow cytometry were used to evaluate the number of myocellular debris in the mediastinal lymph nodes; fluorescence staining and qPCR were used to evaluate fluorescence analysis; seahorse experiment was used to evaluate the level of glycolysis of macrophages; Lyz2𝐶𝑟𝑒, VEGFCfl/fl, and PFKFB3fl/fl mice were used as a model to knock out the expression of VEGF-C and PFKFB3 in macrophages. Results: The escalation of VEGFR3 in cardiac tissue can facilitate the drainage of myocardial debris to the mediastinal lymph nodes, thereby improving cardiac function and reducing fibrosis after reperfusion injury. Conversely, myeloid VEGF-C deficiency displayed an increase in macrophage counts and inflammation levels following reperfusion injury. The inhibition of the critical enzyme PFKFB3 in macrophage glycolysis can stimulate the manifestation of VEGF-C in macrophages. A deficiency in myeloid PFKFB3 is associated with induced lymphangiogenesis following reperfusion injury. Conclusions: Our initial investigations suggest that the suppression of PFKFB3 expression in macrophages could potentially stimulate the production of VEGF-C in these immune cells, which in turn may facilitate lymphangiogenesis and mitigate the inflammatory effects of I/R injury.

Keywords
PFKFB3
macrophages
ischemia-reperfusion injury
lymphangiogenesis
Funding
Tianjin Key Medical Discipline (Specialty) Construction Project
21JCZDJC00600/Tianjin Science and Technology Plan Project
ZC20011/Tianjin Health Science and Technology Project
Figures
Fig. 1.
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