IFN-β affects the angiogenic potential of circulating angiogenic cells by activating calpain 1.

Circulating angiogenic cells (CACs) are monocyte-derived cells with endothelial characteristics, which contribute to both angiogenesis and arteriogenesis in a paracrine way. Interferon-β (IFN-β) is known to inhibit these divergent processes in animals and patients. We hypothesized that IFN-β might act by affecting the differentiation and function of CACs. CACs were cultured from peripheral blood mononuclear cells and phenotypically characterized by surface expression of monocytic and endothelial markers. IFN-β significantly reduced the number of CACs by 18-64%. Apoptosis was not induced by IFN-β, neither in mononuclear cells during differentiation, nor after maturation to CACs. Rather, IFN-β impaired adhesion to, and spreading on, fibronectin, which was dependent on α5β1 (VLA-5)-integrin. IFN-β affected the function of VLA-5 in mature CACs, leading to rounding and detachment of cells, by induction of calpain 1 activity. Cell rounding and detachment was completely reversed by inhibition of calpain 1 activity in mature CACs. During in vitro capillary formation, CAC addition and calpain 1 inhibition enhanced sprouting of endothelial cells to a comparable extent, but were not sufficient to rescue tube formation in the presence of IFN-β. We show that the IFN-β-induced reduction of the numbers of in vitro differentiated CACs is based on activation of calpain 1, resulting in an attenuated adhesion to extracellular matrix proteins via VLA-5. In vivo, this could lead to inhibition of vessel formation due to reduction of the locally recruited CAC numbers and their paracrine angiogenic factors.