First Author | He Y | Year | 2010 |
Journal | Sci Signal | Volume | 3 |
Issue | 116 | Pages | ra26 |
PubMed ID | 20371769 | Mgi Jnum | J:171969 |
Mgi Id | MGI:5002637 | Doi | 10.1126/scisignal.2000722 |
Citation | He Y, et al. (2010) Stabilization of VEGFR2 signaling by cerebral cavernous malformation 3 is critical for vascular development. Sci Signal 3(116):ra26 |
abstractText | Cerebral cavernous malformations (CCMs) are human vascular malformations caused by mutations in three genes of unknown function: CCM1, CCM2, and CCM3. CCM3, also known as PDCD10 (programmed cell death 10), was initially identified as a messenger RNA whose abundance was induced by apoptotic stimuli in vitro. However, the in vivo function of CCM3 has not been determined. Here, we describe mice with a deletion of the CCM3 gene either ubiquitously or specifically in the vascular endothelium, smooth muscle cells, or neurons. Mice with global or endothelial cell-specific deletion of CCM3 exhibited defects in embryonic angiogenesis and died at an early embryonic stage. CCM3 deletion reduced vascular endothelial growth factor receptor 2 (VEGFR2) signaling in embryos and endothelial cells. In response to VEGF stimulation, CCM3 was recruited to and stabilized VEGFR2, and the carboxyl-terminal domain of CCM3 was required for the stabilization of VEGFR2. Indeed, the CCM3 mutants found in human patients lacking the carboxyl-terminal domain were labile and were unable to stabilize and activate VEGFR2. These results demonstrate that CCM3 promotes VEGFR2 signaling during vascular development. |