Table 1.
Patient characteristics.
Fig 1.
Alpha-smooth muscle actin (ASMA) is decreased while vimentin is increased in non-dilated bicuspid aortic valve (BAV)-associated aortas.
A. Fluorescent micrographs of ASMA (top) and vimentin (bottom) in non-dilated aortic tissue from individuals with normal (i.e., tricuspid) aortic valves (TAV; left) and BAVs (right). Higher magnification images of the boxed region are shown to the right of each image. B. Graphs depicting ASMA (top) and vimentin (bottom) expression in the normal ascending aorta from TAV (N = 10) and BAV (N = 10) patients. Horizontal bars represent median values. C. Graph depicting the relationship between ASMA and vimentin expression in the non-dilated aorta of TAV (N = 10) and BAV (N = 10) patients. A.U. = arbitrary units; * = statistical significance; scale bar = 25 μm.
Fig 2.
Alpha-smooth muscle actin (ASMA) is decreased and vimentin is increased in smooth muscle cells (SMCs) isolated from non-dilated bicuspid aortic valve (BAV)-associated aortas.
A. Fluorescent micrographs of ASMA (top) and vimentin (bottom) in SMCs isolated from non-dilated aortas associated with normal (i.e., tricuspid) aortic valves (TAV; left) and BAVs (right). Higher magnification images of the boxed region are shown to the right of each image. B. Graphs depicting ASMA (top) and vimentin (bottom) expression in SMCs from from each group (TAV: N = 8, BAV: N = 7). Horizontal bars represent median values. C. Graph depicting the relationship between ASMA and vimentin in SMCs for each group (TAV: N = 8, BAV: N = 7). A.U. = arbitrary units; * = statistical significance; Scale bar = 20 μm.
Fig 3.
Dilatation of the ascending aorta impacts alpha-smooth muscle actin (ASMA) and vimentin expression in bicuspid aortic valve (BAV)-associated aortas and smooth muscle cells (SMCs).
Graphs depicting ASMA (A) and vimentin (B) expression in non-dilated (ND) and dilated (D) ascending aortic tissue from tricuspid aortic valve (TAV; left)- and BAV (right)- associated aortas. Graphs depicting ASMA (C) and vimentin (D) expression in SMCs isolated from ND and D aortas from TAV (left) and BAV (right) patients. Horizontal bars represent median values. * = statistical significance.
Fig 4.
Alpha-smooth muscle actin (ASMA) is decreased and vimentin is increased in dilated bicuspid aortic valve (BAV)-associated aortas.
A,C. Graphs depicting ASMA (top) and vimentin (bottom) in dilated aortic tissue (A) and smooth muscle cells (SMCs, C) from individuals tricuspid aortic valves (TAV) and BAVs. B,D. Graph depicting relationships between ASMA and vimentin expression in the dilated aorta (B) or isolated SMCs (D) from TAV and BAV patients. Horizontal bars represent median values. A.U. = arbitrary units; * = statistical significance.
Fig 5.
Cell cycle inhibitors p16 and p21 are increased in the dilated aorta and in association with bicuspid aortic valves (BAV). A-B. Graphs depicting p16/p21 positivity in the non-dilated aorta (A) and isolated smooth muscle cells (SMCs, B) in individuals with normal (i.e., tricuspid) aortic valves (TAV) or BAVs. C. Graphs depicting p16/p21 positivity in response to aortic dilatation (D) versus non-dilated (ND) in aortic tissue (left) and SMCs (right) from individuals with TAVs and BAVs. D-E. Graphs depicting p16/p21 positivity in the dilated aorta (D) and isolated SMCs (E) in individuals with TAVs or BAVs. Horizontal bars represent median values. * = statistical significance.
Fig 6.
Smooth muscle cells (SMCs) from bicuspid aortic valve (BAV) aortas switch from contractile to senescent states over time in culture.
A. Graphs depicting the maximum cell passage reached by SMCs isolated from non-dilated (left) or dilated aortas, from individuals with tricuspid aortic valves (TAVs) or BAVs. B. Graphs depicting the relationship between cell passage and ASMA levels in SMCs isolated from normal-sized (left) and dilated (right) TAV and BAV aortas. Horizontal bars represent median values. * = statistical significance. A.U. = arbitrary units.