Vascular stability and tone are maintained by contractile smooth muscle cells (VSMCs). Chronic VSMC dedifferentiation leads to vascular thickening and stiffness. Inhibiting VSMC phenotypic transformation has thus been shown to attenuate progression of vascular disease.
The Department of Physiology Anatomy and Genetics at the University of Oxford has previously identified Thymosin β4 (Tβ4), an actin monomer binding protein, as a key regulator of embryonic VSMC differentiation.
This online seminar will discuss the role of Tβ4 as a key regulator of LRP1 (low-density lipoprotein receptor–related protein-1) for maintaining vascular health and provide insights into the mechanisms of growth factor-controlled VSMC phenotypic modulation underlying aortic disease progression.
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