Cyclic AMP-dependent pathway that mediates suppressive regulation of glycosaminoglycan production in cultured vascular endothelial cells.

We investigated the effect of agents which increase the intracellular level of cyclic AMP (cAMP) on the production of glycosaminoglycans (GAGs) by cultured bovine aortic endothelial cells. It was found that the incorporation of [3H] glucosamine into GAGs was significantly decreased by forskolin, 8-bromo cAMP, 3-isobutyl-1- methylxanthine and prostaglandin E1. The leakage of lactate dehydrogenase into the medium, a marker of nonspecific cell damage, were not changed by forskolin. Forskolin-induced decrease in the [3H]glucosamine incorporation occurred in both heparan sulfate and the other GAGs. The [3H]glucosamine incorporation into GAGs was suppressed by forskolin also in human aortic and human umbilical vein endothelial cells, bovine aortic smooth muscle cells, porcine kidney epithelial LLC-PK1 cells and human fetal lung fibroblastic IMR-90 cells. In conclusion, it was suggested that intracellular cAMP mediates the suppressive regulation of GAG production in vascular endothelial cells; as a result, the cell surface heparan sulfate was reduced. The cAMP-dependent pathway appears to be important as an intracellular mechanism by which endothelial production of anticoagulant heparan sulfate is regulated.