The effect of cgVEGF164 on the growth of murine hair follicles

Abstract

Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) is a dimeric glycoprotein that induces proliferation and migration of vascular endothelial cells as well as regulation of capillary formation around hair follicles which affects the growth and development of hair follicles. cgVEGF164 is a major splice variant of the cashmere goat VEGF-A gene, but its regulation on hair follicles is rarely known. In order to investigate the role of cgVEGF164 on the growth of murine hair follicles, we produced keratin 14 promoter-driven cgVEGF164 transgenic mice via pronuclear microinjection. Firstly, the diameter and density of hair follicles of transgenic mice were compared with non-transgenic control mice in paraffin sections stained by hematoxylin-eosin (H&E). Then, protein expression levels and the phosphorylation of ERK1/2, AKT1 and LEF1 were examined by Western blot. There are five positive individuals among the neonatal mice (positive rate is 8.5%). Compared with non-transgenic control mice, the diameter and density of hair follicles in transgenic mice are both obviously increased. The expression levels of P-ERK1/2/ERK1/2, P-AKT1/AKT1 and P-LEF1/LEF1 are significantly higher in transgenic mice than those in non-transgenic control mice. Based on these results, we conclude that cgVEGF164 as a growth factor can improve the growth of hair follicles which might be mediated by increasing the levels of ERK1/2, AKT1, and LEF1 protein phosphorylation.