Acta Med. 2009, 52: 135-139
Occurrence and Significance of the Nuclear Transcription Factor Krüppel-Like Factor 4 (KLF4) in the Vessel Wall
Practically all mammalian cells including human can switch, according to micro- or macroenvironmental conditions, from states of cellular quiescence to inflammatory activation and vice versa. Along with recent knowledge, cellular quiescence is not a passive, but a highly active state with broad engagement of the cell synthetic and secretory machinery. Inflammatory activation is a beneficial process in cases of infection; however, if its control fails, it may degrade into autoimmune diseases or cancer growth. Control over cellular quiescence is exerted predominantly by a set of zincfinger transcription proteins, referred to as Krüppel-like factors (KLFs). This review article offers recent information concerning activities of Krüppel-like factor 4 in the vascular wall.
Keywords
Endothelial phenotype, Inflammatory cytokines, Shear stress, Transcription factors, Arterial injury, Smooth muscle cells.
Funding
This work was supported by Ministry of Education, Czech Republic, project No. MSM0021620812.
References
Copyright
Published by the Karolinum Press. For permission to use please write to actamedica@lfhk.cuni.cz.
