An Inhibitor of p38 Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinase Abrogates Procoagulant and Proinflammatory Effects of Antiphospholipid Antibodies In Vivo.
Authors: Pierangeli Silvia S. , Vega-Ostertag Mariano E. , Liu Xiaowei 
Published: April 2020

Background: Activation of p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase (p38 MAPK) has been shown to play a fundamental role in antiphospholipid-induced up regulation of tissue factor (TF) expression and function in monocytes and in endothelial cells (ECs) and increased expression of intercellular adhesion molecule -1 (ICAM-1) in vitro. Those effects correlate with the thrombogenic and pro-inflammatory effects of aPL in vivo. However, It is not clear whether aPL-induceTF in vivo.

Methods: To examine this question, we treated CD1 male mice, in groups of 4, with IgG from 3 patients with Antiphospholipid Syndrome (IgG-APS) or with control IgG from healthy controls (IgG-NHS), twice. Seventy-two hours after the first injection, the adhesion of leukocytes per capillary venule (#WBC) to EC in cremaster muscle (as an indication of EC activation in vivo), as well the size of an induced thrombus in the femoral vein of the mice were examined. Some mice were infused i.p. with 25 mg/kg of SB203580 (a p38 MAPK-specific inhibitor) 30 minutes prior to the each IgG-APS injection. TF activity was determined using a chromogenic assay that measures the conversion of factor X into Factor Xa, in homogenates of carotid artery, and in peritoneal cells of mice treated with IgG-APS or with IgG-NHS. Expression of TF and ICAM-1 was determined by cyto-ELISA on cultured HUVECs after treatment of the cells with IgG-APS or with IgG-NHS.

Results: At the time of the surgical procedures, the mean aCL titer in the sera of the mice injected with IgG-APS was 73 ± 34 GPL. In vivo, IgG-APS increased significantly the #WBC adhering to EC, when compared to control mice (5.25 ± 0.96 vs 1.85 ± 0.72) and these effects were significantly reduced (2.1 ± 0.74), when mice were pre-treated with SB203580. IgG-APS increased significantly the thrombus size when compared to IgG-NHS-treated mice (3189 ± 558 μm2 vs 1468 ± 401 μm2) and SB203580 inhibited this effect by 65%. Treatment of the mice with IgG-APS also induced significantly increased TF function in peritoneal cells and in homogenates of carotid artery when compared to IgG-NHS-treated mice (17.5 ±11.1 pM vs. 0.8 ±0.2 pM and 8.31 ± 1.59 vs 0.69 ± 0.03, respectively). Pre-treatment of the mice with SB203580 abrogated completely those effects (0.61 ± 0.06 pM in peritoneal cells and 0.75 ± 0.28 pM in carotid artery preparations of mice treated with IgG-APS). Significant expression of TF and ICAM-1 was observed in vitro when HUVECs were treated with any of the three IgG-APS. TF upregulation and ICAM-1 expression were significantly reduced by pre-treatment of the cells with SB203580 (49–97% for TF and 25–69% for ICAM-1).

Conclusions: The data show that IgG-APS up regulates TF function in vivo, and this correlates with an in vivo pro-inflammatory and pro-thrombotic effect. Importantly, those effects were abrogated in vivo by a p38 MAPK specific inhibitor. These findings may be important in designing new modalities of targeted therapies to treat thrombosis in patients with APS.