Interleukin-10 does not contribute to the anti-contractile nature of PVAT in health

Abstract

Perivascular adipose tissue (PVAT) is protective and reduces contraction of blood vessels in health. PVAT is composed of adipocytes, multiple types of immune cells and stromal cells. Interleukin (IL)-10, an anti-inflammatory cytokine usually produced by T cells, B cells and macrophages, was identified as one of the highly expressed (mRNA) cytokines in the mesenteric PVAT of healthy rats. One report suggested that exogenous IL-10 causes relaxation of mouse mesenteric arteries, also suggesting that IL-10 maybe a potential anti-contractile factor. Hence, we hypothesized that PVAT-derived IL-10 causes vasorelaxation and/or reduces vasoconstriction, thus contributing to the anti-contractile nature of PVAT in health. Mesenteric arteries from rats and mice expressed the receptor for IL-10 (in tunica intima and media) as determined by immunohistochemistry. Mesenteric resistance arteries for rats and superior mesenteric artery for mice were used for isometric contractility studies. Increasing concentrations [0.4–100 ng/mL] of recombinant rat/mouse (rr/mr) IL-10 or vehicle was directly added to half-maximally constricted (phenylephrine, PE) vessels (without PVAT, with endothelium). IL-10 did not cause a direct vasorelaxation. Further, the ability of rrIL-10 to cause a rightward or downward shift of a vasoconstriction-response curve was tested in the rat. The vessels were incubated with rrIL-10 [100 ng/mL or 10 ng/mL] or vehicle for 1.5 h in the tissue bath followed by a cumulative PE [10−8–10−4 M] or U46619 [10−10–10−5 M] response curve. The maximal contractions and EC50 values were similar in IL-10 incubated vessels vs vehicle. Thus, acute exposure of exogenous IL-10 did not reduce local vasoconstriction. To further test if endogenous IL-10 from PVAT was anti-contractile, superior mesenteric arteries from IL-10 WT and KO mice, with and without PVAT, were subjected to increasing concentrations of PE. The anti-contractile nature of PVAT was preserved with both short-term and prolonged depletion (using younger and older mice, respectively) of endogenous IL-10 in males and females. Contrary to our hypothesis, PVAT-derived IL-10 neither caused vasorelaxation nor reduced local vasoconstriction directly/indirectly. Therefore, IL-10 does not contribute to the anti-contractile nature of PVAT in healthy rodents.