Xing Yanjiang, Hou Yangfeng, Fan Tianfei, Gao Ran, Feng Xiaohang, Li Bolun, Pang Junling, Guo Wenjun, Shu Ting, Li Jinqiu, Yang Jie, Mao Qilong, Luo Ya, Qi Xianmei, Yang Peiran, Liang Chaoyang, Zhao Hongmei, Chen Wenhui, Wang Jing, Wang Chen
State Key Laboratory of Respiratory Health and Multimorbidity, Institute of Basic Medical Sciences, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Peking Union Medical College, Beijing 100005, China.
Haihe Laboratory of Cell Ecosystem, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences and Peking Union Medical College, Tianjin 300051, China.
Acta Pharm Sin B. 2024 Apr;14(4):1726-1741. doi: 10.1016/j.apsb.2024.01.012. Epub 2024 Jan 22.
Pulmonary hypertension (PH) is a fatal disorder characterized by pulmonary vascular remodeling and obstruction. The phosphodiesterase 4 (PDE4) family hydrolyzes cyclic AMP (cAMP) and is comprised of four subtypes (PDE4A-D). Previous studies have shown the beneficial effects of pan-PDE4 inhibitors in rodent PH; however, this class of drugs is associated with side effects owing to the broad inhibition of all four PDE4 isozymes. Here, we demonstrate that PDE4B is the predominant PDE isozyme in lungs and that it was upregulated in rodent and human PH lung tissues. We also confirmed that PDE4B is mainly expressed in the lung endothelial cells (ECs). Evaluation of PH in wild type and knockout mice confirmed that is important for the vascular remodeling associated with PH. EC lineage tracing demonstrated that induces PH development by driving endothelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EndMT), and mechanistic studies showed that regulates EndMT by antagonizing the cAMP-dependent PKA-CREB-BMPRII axis. Finally, treating PH rats with a PDE4B-specific inhibitor validated that PDE4B inhibition has a significant pharmacological effect in the alleviation of PH. Collectively, our findings indicate a critical role for PDE4B in EndMT and PH, prompting further studies of PDE4B-specific inhibitors as a therapeutic strategy for PH.
肺动脉高压(PH)是一种以肺血管重塑和阻塞为特征的致命性疾病。磷酸二酯酶4(PDE4)家族可水解环磷酸腺苷(cAMP),由四种亚型(PDE4A - D)组成。先前的研究表明,泛PDE4抑制剂对啮齿动物的肺动脉高压具有有益作用;然而,由于对所有四种PDE4同工酶的广泛抑制,这类药物会产生副作用。在这里,我们证明PDE4B是肺中主要的PDE同工酶,并且在啮齿动物和人类肺动脉高压肺组织中上调。我们还证实PDE4B主要在肺内皮细胞(ECs)中表达。对野生型和基因敲除小鼠的肺动脉高压评估证实,其对与肺动脉高压相关的血管重塑很重要。内皮细胞谱系追踪表明,它通过驱动内皮向间充质转化(EndMT)诱导肺动脉高压的发展,机制研究表明,它通过拮抗cAMP依赖性的PKA - CREB - BMPRII轴来调节EndMT。最后,用PDE4B特异性抑制剂治疗肺动脉高压大鼠证实,抑制PDE4B在缓解肺动脉高压方面具有显著的药理作用。总的来说,我们的研究结果表明PDE4B在EndMT和肺动脉高压中起关键作用,促使人们进一步研究PDE4B特异性抑制剂作为肺动脉高压的治疗策略。