Epigenetic modulation of vascular diseases: Assessing the evidence and exploring the opportunities

Gabriele G Schiattarella; Rosalinda Madonna; Sophie Van Linthout; Thomas Thum; Rainer Schulz; Peter Ferdinandy; Cinzia Perrino

doi:10.1016/j.vph.2018.02.009

Epigenetic modulation of vascular diseases: Assessing the evidence and exploring the opportunities

Vascul Pharmacol. 2018 Mar 14:S1537-1891(17)30468-8. doi: 10.1016/j.vph.2018.02.009. Online ahead of print.

Authors

Gabriele G Schiattarella¹, Rosalinda Madonna², Sophie Van Linthout³, Thomas Thum⁴, Rainer Schulz⁵, Peter Ferdinandy⁶, Cinzia Perrino⁷

Affiliations

¹ Department of Advanced Biomedical Sciences, Federico II University, Naples, Italy.
² Center for Aging Sciences and Translational Medicine - CESI-MeT, Institute of Cardiology, Department of Neurosciences, Imaging and Clinical Sciences, "G. D'Annunzio" University, Chiety, Italy; Center for Cardiovascular Biology and Atherosclerosis Research, Department of Internal Medicine, The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, Houston, TX, United States.
³ Berlin-Brandenburg Center for Regenerative Therapies, Charité, University Medicine Berlin, Campus Virchow, Berlin, Germany; Charité University Medicine Berlin, Campus Rudolf Virchow, Department of Cardiology, Berlin, Germany; DZHK (German Center for Cardiovascular Research), Partner Site Berlin, Berlin, Germany.
⁴ Institute of Molecular and Translational Therapeutic Strategies (IMTTS), Hannover Medical School, Hannover, Germany.
⁵ Institute of Physiology, Justus-Liebig University of Giessen, Giessen, Germany.
⁶ Department of Pharmacology and Pharmacotherapy, Semmelweis University, Budapest, Hungary; Cardiovascular Research Group, Department of Biochemistry, University of Szeged, Szeged, Hungary; Pharmahungary Group, Szeged, Hungary.
⁷ Department of Advanced Biomedical Sciences, Federico II University, Naples, Italy. Electronic address: perrino@unina.it.

PMID: 29548901
DOI: 10.1016/j.vph.2018.02.009

Abstract

Vascular adaptations to either physiological or pathophysiological conditions commonly require gene expression modifications in the most represented cellular elements of the vessel wall, i.e. endothelial and smooth muscle cells. In addition to transcription factors, a number of mechanisms contribute to the regulation of gene expression in these cells including noncoding RNAs, histone and DNA modifications, collectively indicated as epigenetic modifications. Here, we summarize the state of art regarding the role of epigenetic changes in major vascular diseases, and discuss the potential diagnostic and therapeutic applications of epigenetic modulation in this context.

Keywords: Epigenetics; cardiovascular diseases; endothelial cells; smooth muscle cells.

Publication types

Review