Arginase-2 enhances monocyte-endothelial interaction through regulation of integrin and membrane receptor expression: role in atherogenesis.
G, A., Y, Y., S, R., M, C., S, S., A, R., M, S., XF, M., DM, P., & Z, Y. (2026). Arginase-2 enhances monocyte-endothelial interaction through regulation of integrin and membrane receptor expression: role in atherogenesis.. Journal of biomedical science. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12929-026-01278-3
G A, Y Y, S R, M C, S S, A R, et al. Arginase-2 enhances monocyte-endothelial interaction through regulation of integrin and membrane receptor expression: role in atherogenesis.. Journal of biomedical science. 2026; doi: 10.1186/s12929-026-01278-3
G A, Y Y, S R, et al. Arginase-2 enhances monocyte-endothelial interaction through regulation of integrin and membrane receptor expression: role in atherogenesis.[J]. Journal of biomedical science. 2026. DOI: 10.1186/s12929-026-01278-3.
@article{g2026,
author = {Ajalbert G and Yao Y and Rohrer S and Caretti M and Sundaramoorthy S and Rigkou A and Stumpe M and Ming XF and Potenza DM and Yang Z},
title = {Arginase-2 enhances monocyte-endothelial interaction through regulation of integrin and membrane receptor expression: role in atherogenesis.},
journal = {Journal of biomedical science},
year = {2026},
doi = {10.1186/s12929-026-01278-3},
note = {PMID: 42443923},
}
TY - JOUR AU - Ajalbert G AU - Yao Y AU - Rohrer S AU - Caretti M AU - Sundaramoorthy S AU - Rigkou A AU - Stumpe M AU - Ming XF AU - Potenza DM AU - Yang Z TI - Arginase-2 enhances monocyte-endothelial interaction through regulation of integrin and membrane receptor expression: role in atherogenesis. T2 - Journal of biomedical science PY - 2026 DO - 10.1186/s12929-026-01278-3 AN - PMID:42443923 ER -
BACKGROUND: Circulating monocyte trans-endothelial migration is critical for vascular diseases. The monocyte surface proteins, i.e., integrins and membrane receptors are central in this process. Previous studies demonstrate that ablation of the mitochondrial arginase-2 (ARG2) reduces monocyte/macrophage infiltration in cardiovascular disease. We further investigate whether ARG2 regulates integrin and surface receptor levels in monocytes and facilitates trans-endothelial migration, contributing to atherogenesis. METHODS: For this purpose, human THP1 cells deficient in ARG2 gene (THP1ARG2-/-) were generated by CRISPR-U™-mediated genome engineering. Atherosclerotic Apoe-/-Arg2+/+ mice and Apoe-/-Arg2-/- mouse models are used. Proteomic profiling, cellular/molecular biology methods, and confocal microscopy were utilized for gene or protein expression analysis. RESULTS: As compared to the control THP1WT cells, the THP1ARG2-/- cells reveal decreased adhesion and trans-endothelial migratory activities towards chemoattractants in a transwell co-culture system, accompanied by lower levels of αL and α4 integrins, CD99 and PECAM1 (CD31) (surface molecules for trans-endothelial activity) and CCR2 (the chemoattractant receptor). The monocyte adhesion to endothelial cells is reduced by blocking LFA-1 (αLβ2) or VLA-4 (α4β1) integrin. Pro-inflammatory polarization of the THP1 cells with LPS does not affect the integrin and surface receptor levels, however, enhances release of several pro-inflammatory cytokines, which is reduced in THP1ARG2-/- cells due to reduced TLR4-ERK-NF-κB signaling. Conditioned medium from the LPS-primed THP1WT reveals higher capacity to enhance endothelial VCAM-1 and ICAM-1 levels than the THP1ARG2-/- cells, that is partly mediated by IL-1β. Moreover, ARG2-dependent TGF-β signaling was found to selectively regulate αL expression in monocytes. Finally, as compared to Apoe-/-Arg2+/+ mice, the ApoE-/-Arg2-/- mice show significantly decreased macrophage integrin, chemoattractant receptor levels, and atherosclerosis. CONCLUSIONS: Our study identifies ARG2 as a key regulator of monocyte-mediated vascular inflammation and atherogenesis by controlling integrin, chemoattractant receptor expression, and pro-inflammatory cytokine release through TLR4-ERK-NFκB signaling, highlighting ARG2 as a potential therapeutic target for vascular and chronic inflammatory diseases.