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Exp Clin Endocrinol Diabetes 2005; 113(10): 573-576
DOI: 10.1055/s-2005-872894
Article

J. A. Barth Verlag in Georg Thieme Verlag KG Stuttgart · New York

Early Loss of Arteriolar Smooth Muscle Cells: More Than Just a Pericyte Loss in Diabetic Retinopathy

F. vom Hagen1 , Y. Feng1 , A. Hillenbrand1 , S. Hoffmann2 , M. Shani4 , U. Deutsch3 , H. P. Hammes1
  • 15th Medical Clinic, Faculty of Medicine Mannheim, University of Heidelberg, Germany
  • 2Medical Research Center, Faculty of Medicine Mannheim, University of Heidelberg, Germany
  • 3Theodor Kocher Institute, University of Berne, Berne, Switzerland
  • 4Institute of Animal Science, Volcani Center, Bet Dagan, Israel
Further Information

Publication History

Received: November 12, 2004 First decision: January 5, 2005

Accepted: September 2, 2005

Publication Date:
30 November 2005 (online)

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Abstract

Incipient diabetic retinopathy is characterized by increased capillary permeability and progressive capillary occlusion. The earliest structural change is the loss of pericytes (PC) from the retinal capillaries. With the availability of the XLacZ mouse, which expresses the LacZ reporter in a PC/vascular smooth muscle cell (vSMC) specific fashion, we quantitatively assessed the temporal dynamics of smooth muscle cells in arterioles under hyperglycemic conditions. We induced stable hyperglycemia in XLacZ mice. After 4, 8, and 12 weeks of diabetes retinae were isolated and β-galctosidase/lectin stained. The numbers of smooth muscle cells were counted in retinal whole mounts, and diameters of retinal radial and branching arterioles and venules were analyzed at different distances apart from the center of the retina. After eight weeks of diabetes, the numbers of vSMCs were significantly reduced in radial arterioles 1000 μm distant from the optic disc. At proximal sites of branching arterioles (400 µm distant from the center), and at distal sites (1000 µm), vSMC were significantly reduced already after 4 weeks (to a maximum of 31 %). These changes were not associated with any measurable variation in vessel diameters. These data indicate quantitatively that hyperglycemia not only causes pericyte loss, but also loss of vSMCs in the retinal vasculature. Our data suggest that arteriolar vSMC in the eye underlie similar regulations which induce early pericyte loss in the diabetic retina.

Key words

Pericyte - retinopathy - smooth muscle cell

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Franziska vom Hagen

V. Medical Clinic
Faculty of Medicine Mannheim
University of Heidelberg

Theodor-Kutzer-Ufer

68167 Mannheim

Germany

Phone: + 49(0)6213832942

Fax: + 49 (0) 62 13 83 38 04

Email: Franziska.vomhagen@med5.ma.uni-heidelberg.de

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