Loss of Spry1 attenuates vascular smooth muscle proliferation by impairing mitogen-mediated changes in cell cycle regulatory circuits.

Signals from growth factors or mechanical stimuli converge to promote vascular smooth muscle cell (VSMC) migration and proliferation, key events in the pathogenesis of intimal hyperplasia upon vascular injury. Spry1, a regulator of receptor tyrosine kinases (RTK), plays a role in maintaining the contractile phenotype of VSMC. The aim of the current study was to determine the role of Spry1 in VSMC proliferation in vitro and injury induced neointimal hyperplasia in vivo. VSMC proliferation and neointima formation were evaluated in cultured human aortic SMC (hAoSMC) and ligation-induced injury of mouse carotid arteries from Spry1 gene targeted mice, and their corresponding wild type littermates. Human Spry1 or non-targeting control lentiviral shRNAs were used to knock down Spry1 in hAoSMC. Time course cell cycle analysis showed a reduced fraction of S-phase cells at 12 and 24 h after growth medium stimulation in Spry1 shRNA transduced hAoSMC. Consistent with reduced S-phase entry, the induction of cyclinD1 and the levels of pRbS807/S811, pH3Ser10, and pCdc2 were also reduced, while the cell cycle inhibitor p27Kip1 was maintained in Spry1 knockdown hAoSMC. In vivo, loss of Spry1 attenuated carotid artery ligation-induced neointima formation in mice, and this effect was accompanied by a decrease in cell proliferation similar to the in vitro results. Our findings demonstrate that loss of Spry1 attenuates mitogen-induced VSMC proliferation, and thus injury-induced neointimal hyperplasia likely via insufficient activation of Akt signaling causing decreased cyclinD1 and increased p27Kip1 and a subsequent decrease in Rb and cdc2 phosphorylation.