| First Author | Duckers HJ | Year | 2001 |
| Journal | Nat Med | Volume | 7 |
| Issue | 6 | Pages | 693-8 |
| PubMed ID | 11385506 | Mgi Jnum | J:106600 |
| Mgi Id | MGI:3619085 | Doi | 10.1038/89068 |
| Citation | Duckers HJ, et al. (2001) Heme oxygenase-1 protects against vascular constriction and proliferation. Nat Med 7(6):693-8 |
| abstractText | Heme oxygenase (HO-1, encoded by Hmox1) is an inducible protein activated in systemic inflammatory conditions by oxidant stress. Vascular injury is characterized by a local reparative process with inflammatory components, indicating a potential protective role for HO-1 in arterial wound repair. Here we report that HO-1 directly reduces vasoconstriction and inhibits cell proliferation during vascular injury. Expression of HO-1 in arteries stimulated vascular relaxation, mediated by guanylate cyclase and cGMP, independent of nitric oxide. The unexpected effects of HO-1 on vascular smooth muscle cell growth were mediated by cell-cycle arrest involving p21Cip1. HO-1 reduced the proliferative response to vascular injury in vivo; expression of HO-1 in pig arteries inhibited lesion formation and Hmox1-/- mice produced hyperplastic arteries compared with controls. Induction of the HO-1 pathway moderates the severity of vascular injury by at least two adaptive mechanisms independent of nitric oxide, and is a potential therapeutic target for diseases of the vasculature. |
