Costa-Almeida Raquel, Carvalho Daniel T O, Ferreira Miguel J S, Aresta Guilherme, Gomes Manuela E, van Loon Jack J W A, Van der Heiden Kim, Granja Pedro L
3B's Research Group-Biomaterials, Biodegradables and Biomimetics, University of Minho, Headquarters of the European Institute of Excellence on Tissue Engineering and Regenerative Medicine, Guimarães, Portugal.
ICVS/3B's-PT Government Associate Laboratory, Braga/Guimarães, Portugal.
J R Soc Interface. 2016 Nov;13(124). doi: 10.1098/rsif.2016.0688.
Angiogenesis, the formation of blood vessels from pre-existing ones, is a key event in pathology, including cancer progression, but also in homeostasis and regeneration. As the phenotype of endothelial cells (ECs) is continuously regulated by local biomechanical forces, studying endothelial behaviour in altered gravity might contribute to new insights towards angiogenesis modulation. This study aimed at characterizing EC behaviour after hypergravity exposure (more than 1), with special focus on cytoskeleton architecture and capillary-like structure formation. Herein, human umbilical vein ECs (HUVECs) were cultured under two-dimensional and three-dimensional conditions at 3 and 10 for 4 and 16 h inside the large diameter centrifuge at the European Space Research and Technology Centre (ESTEC) of the European Space Agency. Although no significant tendency regarding cytoskeleton organization was observed for cells exposed to high 's, a slight loss of the perinuclear localization of β-tubulin was observed for cells exposed to 3 with less pronounced peripheral bodies of actin when compared with 1 control cells. Additionally, hypergravity exposure decreased the assembly of HUVECs into capillary-like structures, with a 10 level significantly reducing their organization capacity. In conclusion, short-term hypergravity seems to affect EC phenotype and their angiogenic potential in a time and -level-dependent manner.
血管生成，即从已有的血管形成新的血管，是病理学中的一个关键事件，包括癌症进展，但也涉及体内平衡和再生。由于内皮细胞（ECs）的表型受到局部生物力学力的持续调节，研究在改变的重力条件下内皮细胞的行为可能有助于对血管生成调节有新的认识。本研究旨在表征超重力暴露（超过1倍重力）后内皮细胞的行为，特别关注细胞骨架结构和毛细血管样结构的形成。在此，人脐静脉内皮细胞（HUVECs）在欧洲航天局欧洲空间研究与技术中心（ESTEC）的大直径离心机内，于二维和三维条件下，分别在3倍重力和10倍重力下培养4小时和16小时。虽然对于暴露于高重力的细胞，未观察到关于细胞骨架组织的显著趋势，但与1倍重力对照细胞相比，暴露于3倍重力的细胞中β微管蛋白的核周定位略有丧失，肌动蛋白的外周体不太明显。此外，超重力暴露减少了HUVECs组装成毛细血管样结构的能力，在10倍重力水平下其组织能力显著降低。总之，短期超重力似乎以时间和重力水平依赖的方式影响内皮细胞表型及其血管生成潜力。
