Murine double minute-2 expression is required for capillary maintenance and exercise-induced angiogenesis in skeletal muscle

FASEB J. 2012 Nov;26(11):4530-9. doi: 10.1096/fj.12-212720. Epub 2012 Jul 26.

Abstract

Exercise-induced angiogenesis is a key determinant of skeletal muscle function. Here, we investigated whether the E3 ubiquitin ligase murine double minute-2 (Mdm2) exerts a proangiogenic function in exercised skeletal muscle. Mdm2 hypomorphic (Mdm2(Puro/Δ7-9)) mice have a 60% reduction in Mdm2 expression compared with that in wild-type animals. Capillary staining on muscle sections from Mdm2(Puro/Δ7-9) sedentary mice with a wild-type or knockout background for p53 revealed that deficiency in Mdm2 resulted in 20% capillary regression independently of p53 status. In response to one bout of exercise, protein expression of the proangiogenic vascular endothelial growth factor-A (VEGF-A) was increased by 64% in muscle from wild-type animals, and endothelial cell outgrowth from exercised muscle biopsy samples cultured in a 3-dimensional collagen gel was enhanced by 37%. These proangiogenic responses to exercise were impaired in exercised Mdm2(Puro/Δ7-9) mice. Prolonged exercise training resulted in increased Mdm2 protein expression (+49%) and capillarization (+24%) in wild-type muscles. However, exercise training-induced angiogenesis was abolished in Mdm2(Puro/Δ7-9) mice. Finally, exercise training restored Mdm2, VEGF-A, and capillarization levels in skeletal muscles from obese Zucker diabetic fatty rats compared with those in healthy animals. Our results define Mdm2 as a crucial regulator of capillary maintenance and exercise-induced angiogenesis in skeletal muscle.

Publication types

  • Research Support, N.I.H., Intramural
  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • Capillaries
  • Female
  • Gene Expression Regulation / physiology*
  • Male
  • Mice
  • Muscle, Skeletal / blood supply*
  • Muscle, Skeletal / metabolism
  • Neovascularization, Physiologic / genetics
  • Neovascularization, Physiologic / physiology*
  • Obesity / physiopathology
  • Physical Conditioning, Animal / physiology*
  • Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-mdm2 / genetics
  • Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-mdm2 / metabolism*
  • Rats
  • Rats, Sprague-Dawley
  • Rats, Zucker
  • Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor A / genetics
  • Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor A / metabolism

Substances

  • Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor A
  • vascular endothelial growth factor A, rat
  • Mdm2 protein, mouse
  • Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-mdm2