Creation of vascular structures from non-vascular cells

2018 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 17K19510
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Challenging Research (Exploratory)
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Research Field: Biomedical structure and function and related fields
• Research Institution: The University of Tokyo
• Principal Investigator: Kurihara Hiroki 東京大学, 大学院医学系研究科(医学部), 教授 (20221947)
• Research Collaborator: WADA Youichiro ; UCHIJIMA Yasunobu ; TONAMI Kazuo
• Project Period (FY): 2017-06-30 – 2019-03-31
• Keywords: 血管新生 / 血管内皮細胞 / 形態形成

Outline of Final Research Achievements

In this study, we aimed to discover the molecular system unique to endothelial cells that are responsible for angiogenic ability and to reconstruct them in non-endothelial cells to test whether they can create the vascular structure. Vascular endothelial cells show unique dynamics different from non-vascular cells, in a part of which VE-cadherin is involved. Furthermore, single-cell RNA-seq revealed the involvement of a KLF transcription factor in governing the manifestation of behaviors unique to endothelial cells. However, at present, introduction of VE-cadherin and KLF transcription factor alone is not enough to confer the ability of vessel-like structure formation on non-endothelial cells. We are currently searching for the third factor(s) critical for the formation of the vascular branching structure.

Free Research Field

発生学

Academic Significance and Societal Importance of the Research Achievements

血管新生能を担っている内皮細胞の運動特性を明らかにし、これらに関与する分子機能を非血管内皮細胞において再構築することで血管構造を実際に作らせることが出来れば、血管新生ひいてはより普遍的な樹状パターン形成機構の理解が飛躍的に進歩すると考えられる。さらに、非血管細胞のアイデンティティーを保持したままで血管構造を作ったり、生体内の血管内膜に組み込むことができれば、血液循環系に直結した臓器機能の再建（特に、内分泌代謝系臓器）にも可能性を開くなど、将来的には細胞移植による再生治療の新しい技術開発にもつながる可能性がある。