Fast Breaking Comment by Masataka Sata, MD. PhD

Masataka Sata, MD. PhD answers a few questions about this month's fast breaking paper in the field of Clinical Medicine.

From •>>April 2003

Field: Clinical Medicine
Article Title: "Hematopoietic stem cells differentiate into vascular cells that participate in the pathogenesis of atherosclerosis"
Authors: Sata, M;Saiura, A;Kunisato, A;Tojo, A;Okada, S;Tokuhisa, T;Hirai, H;Makuuchi, M;Hirata, Y;Nagai, R
Journal: NATURE MED
Volume: 8
Page: 403-409
Year: APR 2002
* Univ Tokyo, Grad Sch Med, Dept Cardiovasc Med, Tokyo, Japan.
* Univ Tokyo, Grad Sch Med, Dept Cardiovasc Med, Tokyo, Japan.
* Univ Tokyo, Grad Sch Med, Dept Surg, Tokyo, Japan.
* Univ Tokyo, Grad Sch Med, Dept Hematol & Oncol, Tokyo, Japan.
* Univ Tokyo, Grad Sch Med, Dept Nephrol & Endocrinol, Tokyo, Japan.
* Chiba Univ, Grad Sch Med, Dept Dev Genet, Chiba, Japan.
* Japan Sci & Technol Corp, Precursory Res Embryon Sci & Technol, Kawaguchi, Saitama, Japan.

Why do you think your paper is highly cited?

There is growing enthusiasm for the potential use of somatic stem cells for "cell transplantation therapy" and "tissue engineering". However, it remains to be elucidated whether adult stem cells also participate in pathological remodeling and neoplasm development. Our paper provided the first evidence that adult stem cells can contribute to pathological remodeling of remote organs. Our findings are of great interest not only to cardiovascular researchers, but also to a broad range of investigators on stem cell biology and regenerative medicine.

Does it describe a new discovery or a new methodology that's useful to others?

Yes. Our study posed a challenge to the dogma of atherosclerosis that smooth muscle cells (SMCs) in vascular lesions originate only from local mesenchymal tissues. We found that circulating progenitors substantially contribute to vascular repair and lesion formation. Furthermore, in this manuscript, we report novel methods used to perform cardiac transplantation and balloon-angioplasty in tiny mice. (The tutorial video of the surgical procedure can be viewed at http://plaza.umin.ac.jp/~msata/.)

Could you summarize the significance of your paper in layman's terms?

The excessive accumulation of SMCs in blood vessels plays a key role in the pathogenesis of vascular disease as well as in the complications which can occur after angioplasty, transplantation, and other procedures. There has been great interest in finding means to prevent SMC accumulation. We have discovered a potential new target for this effort. Our results suggest that the majority of SMCs that contribute to arterial remodeling derive from the bone marrow. Our study also provides the basis for the development of a new therapeutic strategy—targeting mobilization, homing, differentiation and proliferation of bone marrow-derived vascular progenitor cells.

How did you become involved in this research?

I am a cardiologist. I treated many patients with coronary artery diseases by performing angioplasty. However, a significant number of these procedures failed due to restenosis. I started my basic research in order to find an effective therapy to prevent restenosis. When I was analyzing histological sections after angioplasty, I observed that blood cells attached to the luminal side of the injured artery prior to the development of SMC hyperplasia. This finding made me hypothesize that circulating progenitors might contribute to neointima formation. I started this research to prove this hypothesis.

Masataka Sata, MD. PhD
Assistant Professor
The University of Tokyo
Tokyo, Japan
Researcher
Japan Science and Technology Corporation
Kawaguchi, Japan

ESI Special Topics, April 2003
Citing URL - http://www.esi-topics.com/fbp/2003/april03-MasatakaSata.html