Báo cáo khoa học: Signalling and regulation of collagen I synthesis by ET-1 and TGF-b1 doc

Signalling and regulation of collagen I synthesis by ET-1
and TGF-b1
Angelika Horstmeyer
1
, Christoph Licht
2
, Gabriele Scherr
1
, Beate Eckes
1
and Thomas Krieg
1
1 Department of Dermatology and 2 Children’s Hospital, University of Cologne, Cologne, Germany
Connective tissue homeostasis requires the tightly
coordinated regulation of synthesis and degradation of
extracellular matrix constituents (ECM). This involves
a number of different factors including signalling of
cytokines in an auto- and paracrine manner, e.g. trans-
forming growth factor-b1 (TGF-b1), platelet-derived
growth factor (PDGF), basic fibroblast growth factor
(bFGF) and tumour necrosis factor-a (TNF-a).
Collagen I is the major fibrillar collagen in the der-
mal connective tissue and comprises approximately
80% of the total amount of the collagens synthesized
by fibroblasts. Dysregulated collagen I synthesis at any
step leads to diseases such as scurvy or fibrosis of skin
and internal organs.
TGF-b1 transmits its biological effects via serine-
threonine receptors and Smad-proteins [1]. Some of
Keywords
Connective tissue growth factor; dermal

fibroblast; endothelin receptor subtypes;
fibrosis; phospholipase
Correspondence
A. Horstmeyer, Department of Dermatology,
University of Cologne, Joseph-Stelzmann-
Str. 9, D-50931 Cologne, Germany
Fax: (+)49 221 478 5949
Tel: (+)49 221 478 6152
E-mail:
(Received 29 May 2005, revised 7 October
2005, accepted 13 October 2005)
doi:10.1111/j.1742-4658.2005.05016.x
Endothelin-1 (ET-1) plays an important role in tissue remodelling and
fibrogenesis by inducing synthesis of collagen I via protein kinase C
(PKC). ET-1 signals are transduced by two receptor subtypes, the
ETA- and ETB-receptors which activate different Ga proteins. Here, we
investigated the expression of both ET-receptor subtypes in human primary
dermal fibroblasts and demonstrated that the ETA-receptor is the major
ET-receptor subtype expressed. To determine further signalling intermedi-
ates, we inhibited Gai and three phospholipases. Pharmacologic inhibition
of Gai, phosphatidylcholine-phospholipase C (PC-PLC) and phospholipase
D (PLD), but not of phospholipase Cb, abolished the increase in collagen I
by ET-1. Inhibition of all phospholipases revealed similar effects on
TGF-b1 induced collagen I synthesis, demonstrating involvement of
PC-PLC and PLD in the signalling pathways elicited by ET-1 and TGF-b1.
ET-1 and TGF-b1 each stimulated collagen I production and in an additive
manner. ET-1 further induced connective tissue growth factor (CTGF), as
did TGF-b1, however, to lower levels. While rapid and sustained CTGF
induction was seen following TGF-b1 treatment, ET-1 increased CTGF in
a biphasic manner with lower induction at 3 h and a delayed and higher

induction after 5 days of permanent ET-1 treatment. Coincidentally at
5 days of permanent ET-1 stimulation, a switch in ET-receptor subtype
expression to the ETB-receptor was observed. We conclude that the signal-
ling pathways induced by ET-1 and TGF-b1 leading to augmented collagen
I production by fibroblasts converge on a similar signalling pathway.
Thereby, long-time stimulation by ET-1 resulted in a changed ET-receptor
subtype ratio and in a biphasic CTGF induction.
Abbreviations
bFGF, basic fibroblast growth factor; CTGF, connective tissue growth factor; DAG, 1,2-diacylglycerol; ECM, extracellular matrix; ET-1,
Endothelin-1; ET-receptor, endothelin receptor; FBS, fetal bovine serum; IP
3
, inositol triphosphate; Ga,Ga protein; MMP, matrix
metalloproteinase; PC, phosphatidylcholine; PDGF, platelet-derived growth factor; PKC, protein kinase C; PLC, phospholipase; PTX, Pertussis
toxin; TGF-b1, transforming growth factor-b1; TIMP-1, tissue inhibitory matrix metalloproteinase-1; TNF-a, tumour necrosis factor-a.
FEBS Journal 272 (2005) 6297–6309 ª 2005 The Authors Journal Compilation ª 2005 FEBS 6297
the actions of TGF-b1 are mediated by the induction
of connective tissue growth factor (CTGF) [2], which
stimulates collagen production by fibroblasts [3].
CTGF is coexpressed with TGF-b1 at sites of tissue
fibrosis in numerous tissues [4].
Besides TGF-b1 and CTGF, the peptide hormone
endothelin-1 (ET-1) was also reported to be involved
in the pathophysiology of cardiac [5,6], renal [7], pul-
monary [8–10], and dermal fibrosis such as systemic
sclerosis ⁄ scleroderma [11–13]. Serum concentrations of
ET-1 as well as TGF-b1 were increased in scleroderma
patients [8,14,15]. These patients showed changes in
total ET-receptor expression with an increased percent-
age of the ETB-receptor, one of the two ET-receptor
subtypes [11,12,15].

An antagonist against both ET-receptor subtypes
abolished ET-1 induced synthesis of matrix proteins
such as fibronectin and collagens I and III, suggesting
that their synthesis is mediated via both ET-receptor
subtypes [11]. In contrast, other authors reported that
these effects were solely mediated via ETA-receptor
stimulation [5]. Besides these inducing effects, ETA-
receptor stimulation also contributes to ECM degra-
dation by reducing expression of tissue inhibitor of
matrix metalloproteinase-1 (TIMP-1) and inducing
that of matrix metalloproteinase-2 (MMP-2) [7,16],
which in turn degrades MMP-1 cleaved collagen I [17].
Regulation of MMP-1 expression by ET-1 has been
discussed controversially demonstrating repression as
well as induction [11,18]. However, the opposing
effects of ET-1 on collagen I synthesis and breakdown
clearly indicate an important role for ET-1 in the
dynamic regulation of ECM and its dysregulation in
disease [19].
ET-1 and its isoforms ET-2 and )3 belong to a
peptide hormone family, which was originally charac-
terized as a vasoconstrictor in the systemic and
pulmonary circulation [15]. Since then, apart from
regulating ECM deposition and turnover [7,11,18,19],
ET-1 was further shown to induce differentiation [13],
mitogenesis [11] or release of pro-inflammatory cyto-
kines such as the ECM regulatory cytokines TGF-b1
[20,21], PDGF, bFGF [22] and TNF-a [23].
The endothelins exert their biological effects via two
specific cell surface receptor subtypes, the ETA- and the

ETB- receptor, which are members of the G protein-
coupled receptor family. The ETA-receptor couples to
heterotrimeric Ga proteins such as Gaq, Gas, Ga12 ⁄ 13
[24–26] and in some cell types to Gai [27–29], whereas
the ETB- receptor couples to Gai and Gaq [25]. Signal
transduction triggered by binding of one of the three
endothelins leads to changed concentrations of various
second messengers such as Ca
2+
, 1,2-diacylglycerol
(DAG), inositol triphosphate (IP
3
), cyclic adenosine
3¢,5¢-monophosphate (cAMP) and arachidonic acid
[24,27].
The induction of collagen I synthesis by ET-1 was
described to involve protein kinase C-d (PKC-d), p44 ⁄ 42
MAPK (pERK1 ⁄ 2) and SP-1 [30,31]. PKC-d is a mem-
ber of the novel PKCs. Their activation depends exclu-
sively on DAG, in contrast to the conventional PKCs,
which require DAG and Ca
2+
in addition to phospha-
tidylserine for activation [32]. ET-1 increases cellular
DAG concentrations derived from 4,5-bis-phosphate
(PIP2) by PIP2-PLC-b [24] and phosphatidylcholine
(PC) by PLD [33–35] or by PC-PLC activation [34–36].
To better understand the molecular mechanisms
underlying the role of ET-1 in regulating ECM depos-
ition and its involvement in fibrotic processes, we

analysed the signalling pathway inducing collagen I
synthesis between the cell surface receptor and PKC-d
by pharmacological intervention using specific inhibi-
tors. We also investigated the effects of combined
ET-1 and TGF-b1 stimulation and of prolonged stimu-
lation with respect to ET-receptor subtype expression
and the induction of CTGF and TGF-b1 transcripts.
Results
Expression of ET-receptor subtypes by human
primary dermal fibroblasts
Cell surface binding of [
125
I]ET-1 revealed specific ET-
1 binding sites on human primary dermal fibroblasts.
Binding was confirmed by displacing labelled ligand by
specific ET-receptor antagonists including the nonsub-
type specific antagonist PD156252, the ETA-receptor
selective antagonist BQ123 and the ETB-receptor
selective antagonist BQ788. The IC
50
values were
5.4 · 10
)10
m for BQ123, and 3.8 · 10
)7
m for BQ788,
clearly demonstrating high affinity binding to the
ETA-receptor (Fig. 1A). These data are in agreement
with previously published IC
50

values [37,38].
Results from surface binding analysis were further
confirmed by immunoblotting (Fig. 2A). In total cell
lysates, the ETA-receptor was clearly detected as well
as in membrane fractions. The ETA-receptor was
enriched in membrane fractions as revealed by two
specific bands, a predominant band of approximately
55 kDa and a less prominent one of approximately
45 kDa as described [24,39,40]. Using immunodetec-
tion, we were unable to show ETB-receptor expression
in fibroblasts. However, applying RT-PCR, both, the
ETA- as well as the ETB-receptor were detectable as
single bands at 135 bp (ETA-receptor) and 150 bp
(ETB-receptor; Fig. 2B).
ET-1 and TGF-b1 signalling A. Horstmeyer et al.
6298 FEBS Journal 272 (2005) 6297–6309 ª 2005 The Authors Journal Compilation ª 2005 FEBS
We therefore conclude that the ETA-receptor is the
receptor predominantly expressed by human primary
dermal fibroblasts, while ETB-receptor expression lev-
els are much lower as reported elsewhere [11].
Additive induction of collagen I levels by ET-1
and TGF-b1
ET-1 stimulation (100 nm) induced a twofold increase
in the synthesis of collagen I compared to unstimu-
lated controls (Fig. 3A), in concordance with published
data [11,13]. By immunoblotting, collagen I was detec-
ted by two different antibodies against human collagen
I, a polyclonal and a monoclonal one (data not
shown). Both antibodies recognized collagen I derived
from fibroblast culture supernatants as well as purified

collagen I. As a positive control, cultures stimulated
by 180 pm TGF-b1 [41,42] were included in all subse-
quent analyses. Induction of collagen I by TGF-b1
and by ET-1 was perceptible by coomassie staining as
well as by immunoblotting (Fig. 3B). The immunoblot
thus confirms the specifity of the coomassie staining
(see Experimental procedures).
Comparing collagen I levels induced by either
ET-1 or TGF-b1 or a combination of both revealed
that either hormone alone enhanced collagen I levels
in fibroblasts compard to unstimulated cells (control)
and that the combination induced an additive effect.
Fibroblasts responded to stimulation by increasing
collagen I synthesis in the order: unstimulated
AB
Fig. 2. Expression of ET-receptors. (A) Immunoblotting: human primary dermal fibroblasts were cultured for two days and cells were lysed
or fractionated. Samples were separated by 10% SDS ⁄ PAGE and electrophoretically transferred to nitrocellulose. ET-receptors were visual-
ized with polyclonal rabbit anti-ETA- or anti-ETB-receptor antibody. Lanes: membrane fraction (membrane), total cell lysate (lysate). The
immunoblot shown represents three independent experiments, each performed with cells from different donors and cell isolations. (B)
RT-PCR: human primary dermal fibroblasts were cultured for one day, then starved for one day. RNA was isolated, reverse-transcribed and
subjected to PCR in presence of specific primer pairs for the ETA- or ETB-receptor. Samples were separated by 3% agarose-ethidium bro-
mide gel electrophoresis. Results from two different donors (lane 1, 2) and negative controls (H
2
O) are shown. The gel shown represents
four independent experiments, performed with cells from different donors and cell isolations.
Fig. 1. Displacement of [
125
I]ET-1 by specific ET-receptor antago-
nists. Human primary dermal fibroblasts were cultured on 96 well
plates for two days. Fibroblasts were incubated with [

125
I]ET-1
(25 p
M) with antagonists as indicated, lysed, and bound ligand was
determined using a c-counter. (A) Results are summarized as IC
50
values and means ± SEM of six independent experiments each
performed with cells from different donors and cell isolations. (B)
Representative displacement curves of the three antagonists:
PD156252 (n), BQ123 (m), BQ788 (d). Results are means ± SEM.
A. Horstmeyer et al. ET-1 and TGF-b1 signalling
FEBS Journal 272 (2005) 6297–6309 ª 2005 The Authors Journal Compilation ª 2005 FEBS 6299
control < ET-1 < TGF-b1 < ET-1 + TGF-b1
(Fig. 3B).
Analysis of ET-1 and TGFb1 signalling
mechanisms resulting in collagen I synthesis
To determine the signalling pathway between the ET-
receptor and its cognate PKC-isoform, that mediates
the ET-1 induced collagen I synthesis in fibroblasts,
specific inhibitors were applied. Cadwallader et al. [29]
described Gai-dependent ET-1 stimulation of PKC via
the ETA-receptor in rat fibroblasts. We therefore inves-
tigated the involvement of Gai in human primary
dermal fibroblasts. Pertussis toxin (PTX), a specific Gai
inhibitor [26], strongly decreased ET-1-induced collagen
I synthesis. But PTX did not alter unstimulated, basal
collagen I synthesis (Fig. 4) as previously described
[43]. Further, collagen I levels induced by TGF-b1
stimulation were also not altered by PTX, as described
[43]. This indicated involvement of Gai leading to

enhanced collagen I levels after ET-1 stimulation.
To determine the phospholipases responsible for
PKC activation [32], we examined the possible DAG
donors PLC-b, PC-PLC and PLD. PLCb, a down-
stream effector of the Gaq [44] as well as of the bc
subunit of Gai [45] was inhibited specifically by
U73122 [46]. Inhibiting PLC-b by U73122 did not alter
ET-1-induced collagen I synthesis, nor did it influence
basal or TGF-b1-stimulated collagen I levels (Fig. 5A).
Next, we analysed the involvement of the PC-phospho-
lipases. We used D609 to specifically inhibit PC-PLC
[46], and neomycin [47–49] and N-butanol [50–52] as
specific inhibitors of PLD. The inhibition of PC-PLC
by D609 (Fig. 5B) and inhibition of PLD by neomycin
(Fig. 5C) as well as by N-butanol (not shown) abol-
ished the increase in collagen I levels after ET-1
A
B
Fig. 3. ET-1 induces collagen I synthesis. Human primary dermal fibroblasts were cultured without or with hormone (100 nM ET-1, 180 pM
TGF-b1) for 2 days. The entire cell culture media were incubated with pepsin, TCA-precipitated and separated by 6% SDS ⁄ PAGE. (A) Pro-
teins were electrophoretically transferred to nitrocellulose and collagen I was visualized with polyclonal rabbit anticollagen I antibody. Lanes:
unstimulated fibroblasts (control), fibroblasts stimulated with ET-1 (ET-1), fibroblasts stimulated with TGF-b1 (TGFb1), one lg of purified colla-
gen I (positive control). The histogram represents densitometric ratios of (stimulated: unstimulated) collagen I signals from three independent
experiments, performed with cells from different donors and cell isolations. Unstimulated values were set as 1.0. Results are means ±
SEM. Asterisks represent statistically significant differences, P < 0.05. (B) Two specific collagen I bands representing the a1anda2 chains
of collagen I were stained by Coomassie Blue. Lanes: unstimulated fibroblasts (control), fibroblasts stimulated with ET-1 (ET-1), fibroblasts
stimulated with TGF-b1 (TGFb1), fibroblasts stimulated with ET-1 and TGF-b1 (ET-1 TGFb1). The histogram represents densitometric ratios
(stimulated: unstimulated) of collagen I signals from four independent experiments, performed with cells from different donors and cell iso-
lations. Unstimulated values were set as 1.0. Results are means ± SEM.
ET-1 and TGF-b1 signalling A. Horstmeyer et al.

6300 FEBS Journal 272 (2005) 6297–6309 ª 2005 The Authors Journal Compilation ª 2005 FEBS
stimulation. Of note, simultaneous PLD inhibition and
ET-1 stimulation significantly reduced collagen I levels
to below basal values. TGF-b1 signalling was affected
similarly, with no effect by inhibiting PLC-b (Fig. 5A),
strong down-regulation of collagen I levels after inhi-
bition of PC-PLC (Fig. 5B), and similar collagen I
down-regulation after PLD inhibition (Fig. 5C). These
results demonstrate a crucial role for the PC-phospho-
lipases in collagen I induction by both ET-1 and TGF-
b1. Our results are in agreement with previous reports
that demonstrated the involvement of PC-PLC in
TGF-b1-mediated regulation of other genes not inclu-
ding collagen I in further cell types [53,54].
Long-term stimulation by ET-1 and TGF-b1
Increased serum concentrations of ET-1 and TGF-b1
were shown to be present in sera of patients with fibro-
tic diseases [8,14,15]. In addition, it has been described
that TGF-b1 causes a persistent increase in collagen I
[41] partly via CTGF gene activation [55]. It is thereby
reported for both hormones that an induced CTGF
gene expression correlates with an increased amount of
the CTGF hormone [18,56]. To clarify whether ET-1
also mediates its effects via CTGF, we stimulated
fibroblasts with ET-1 and TGF-b1 for five days and
examined CTGF and TGF-b1 gene activation
(Fig. 6A). ET-1 stimulation resulted in a biphasic
induction of CTGF. We observed a weak and short
initial increase of CTGF transcripts three hours after
ET-1 stimulation, which thereafter decreased to basal

levels. However, a stimulation for five days resulted in
a second, stronger increase in CTGF RNA levels. In
contrast to ET-1, stimulation with TGF-b1 led to per-
sistent induction of CTGF transcripts during the entire
stimulation period.
As ET-1 induced TGF-b1 RNA expression in var-
ious cell types [20,21] and both, ET-1 and TGF-b1 act
additionally to induce collagen I synthesis (Fig. 3B) we
examined whether ET-1 induces TGF-b1 gene activa-
tion in human primary dermal fibroblasts. In contrast
to TGF-b1, that induced its own gene activation, ET-1
stimulation failed to induce TGF-b1 RNA levels
(Fig. 6B). This indicates a TGF-b1 independent action
of ET-1.
Previous reports described altered ratios of ETA- to
ETB-receptors in fibroblasts cultured from the skin of
patients with systemic sclerosis [11,12]. We were inter-
ested to see whether long-term in vitro stimulation of
fibroblasts from healthy donors with ET-1 also leads
to similar modulations. Indeed after stimulation with
ET-1 over five days we observed induced levels of the
ETB-receptor, while ETA-receptor levels were strongly
diminished (Fig. 7C).
Discussion
Using human primary dermal fibroblasts, the ETA-
receptor was clearly detectable by immunoblotting in
contrast to the ETB-receptor, which required more
sensitive investigation by RNA analysis for detection.
Furthermore, ET-1 displacement studies with subtype-
specific antagonists confirmed binding only to the

ETA-receptor. Thus, the ETA-receptor is the main
Fig. 4. Analysis of signalling mechanism: Gai. After pretreatment with PTX (100 ngÆmL
)1
, overnight) human primary dermal fibroblasts were
cultured without or with hormone (100 n
M ET-1, 180 pM TGF-b1) for 2 days. Entire cell culture media were incubated with pepsin, TCA-preci-
pitated and separated by 6% SDS ⁄ PAGE. Two specific collagen I bands representing the a1anda2 chains of collagen I were stained by
Coomassie Blue. Lanes: unstimulated fibroblasts (control), fibroblasts stimulated with (ET-1), fibroblasts stimulated with TGFb1. The histo-
gram represents densitometric ratios (stimulated: unstimulated) of collagen I signals from three independent experiments, performed with
cells from different donors and cell isolations. Unstimulated values were set as 1.0. Results are means ± SEM. Asterisks represent statisti-
cally significant differences, P < 0.05.
A. Horstmeyer et al. ET-1 and TGF-b1 signalling
FEBS Journal 272 (2005) 6297–6309 ª 2005 The Authors Journal Compilation ª 2005 FEBS 6301
ET-receptor subtype expressed in human primary der-
mal fibroblasts, consistent with findings by Shi-wen
et al. [11].
Interestingly, increased ET-1 serum concentrations
and a change in the ratio of the ETA- to the ETB-
receptor with an increase of the ETB-receptor on fibro-
blasts from patients with systemic scleroderma have
been described [11,12]. This is in agreement with a
change in ET-receptor subtype expression pattern
towards the ETB-receptor after long-term stimulation
of five days by ET-1. The receptor subtype shift
towards the ETB-receptor described here is different
from cardiac and pulmonary fibrosis, where increased
numbers of ETA-receptor binding sites were observed
[9,57]. A similar receptor subtype shift towards the
ETB-receptor is described in smooth muscle cells under
the development of arteriosclerosis [58] and for endo-

thelial cells under the condition of hypertension [59].
A changed ratio of ET-receptor subtypes results in
a modified signal transduction, because ETA- and
ETB-receptors couple in part to different Ga proteins.
For example in smooth muscle cells, a shift towards
the ETB-receptor causes a deformation of these cells
[60], whereas in human myocardial fibroblasts a shift
towards the ETA-receptor profoundly interferes with
cellular Ca
2+
regulation [57]. Moreover, it is described
that the ETA-receptor regulates proliferation by pro-
and antimitogenic actions [24,61]. In addition, the
ETA-receptor is a regulator of collagen I homeostasis
by inducing both, its synthesis and its degradation
[7,16] in contrast to the ETB-receptor that only indu-
ces collagen I synthesis [11,62]. A changed ET-receptor
subtype relation towards ETB-receptor thus may dis-
turb the balance between synthesis and degradation of
collagen I by ET-1. In this context, an increased num-
ber of ETB-receptors may in turn be responsible for a
change of signalling properties via different Ga coup-
ling induced by ET-1 [63]. This may be potentiated by
a changed internalization of ETB-receptors. Homo-
dimers and monomers of the ETB-receptor are
A
B
C
Fig. 5. Analysis of signalling mechanism:
DAG mediators PLC-b, PC-PLC and PLD.

After pretreatment with specific phospho-
lipase inhibitors (15 min) human primary der-
mal fibroblasts were cultured without or
with hormone (100 n
M ET-1, 180 pM TGF-
b1) for two days. Entire cell culture media
were incubated with pepsin, TCA-precipita-
ted and separated by 6% SDS ⁄ PAGE.
(A) PLCb inhibition by U73122 (10 l
M).
(B) PC-PLC inhibition by D609 (185 l
M).
(C) PLD inhibition by neomycin (500 l
M).
Two specific collagen I bands representing
the a1 and a2 chains of collagen I were
stained by Coomassie Blue. Lanes: unstimu-
lated fibroblasts (control), fibroblasts stimu-
lated with ET-1 (ET-1), fibroblasts stimulated
with TGF-b1 (TGFb1). The histograms repre-
sent densitometric ratios (stimulated:
unstimulated) of collagen I signals from five
independent experiments, performed with
cells from different donors and cell isola-
tions. Unstimulated values were set as 1.0.
Results are means ± SEM. Asterisks repre-
sent statistically significant differences,
P < 0.05.
ET-1 and TGF-b1 signalling A. Horstmeyer et al.
6302 FEBS Journal 272 (2005) 6297–6309 ª 2005 The Authors Journal Compilation ª 2005 FEBS

lysosomally degradated after ET-1 binding [64,65].
Elevated numbers of ETB-receptors increase the prob-
ability of heterodimerization between ETA- and ETB-
receptor proteins. These heterodimers are recycled
after ligand binding as is the case for the monomeric
ETA-receptor [66]. This additionally increases amount
of ETB-receptors present at the cell membrane. It is
described [67] that the internalization and subsequent
lysosomal degradation of the ETB-receptor is respon-
sible for its short-term signalling period after ligand
binding. Therefore, this changed ETB-receptor inter-
nalization may lead to a prolonged signal transduction
period via the ETB-receptor.
The augmented autoinduction of ET-1 synthesis and
secretion via increased ETB-receptor numbers [68]
may also augment the intracellular signalling effects of
ETB-receptors. This may result into an overshooting
collagen I synthesis by ET-1. This is supported by our
results demonstrating CTGF gene activation after
ET-1 stimulation: ET-1 led to an activation of the
early response gene CTGF at two time-points. The
first peak in CTGF gene activation was observed only
three hours after ET-1 stimulation, whereas a second
one was detectable after continuous stimulation for
five days by ET-1. Reports from several groups indica-
ted that induction of CTGF mRNA by ET-1 is regu-
lated in a cell type-specific manner. In human
pulmonary fibroblasts, CTGF RNA was strongly
induced by ET-1 for more than 12 hours [18], while in
cardiac myocytes, CTGF was transiently induced for

barely four hours, while in cardiac fibroblasts, no
CTGF induction was observed [69].
A
B
Fig. 6. Long-term effects of CTGF and
TGFb1 gene activation by ET-1 and TGF-b1.
Human primary dermal fibroblasts were cul-
tured without or with hormone (100 n
M
ET-1, 180 pM TGF-b1) for the indicated
times. Specific CTGF RNA or TGF-b1 RNA
were detected by nothern hybridization with
32
P labelled probes and visualized on X-ray
films. (A) CTGF gene activation: samples are
unstimulated fibroblasts (C), fibroblasts
stimulated with ET-1 (E), fibroblasts stimula-
ted with TGF-b1 (T). Top panel: CTGF
detection, bottom panel: 18S detection
(loading control). The histograms represent
densitometric ratios of CTGF to 18S signals
from three to seven independent experi-
ments, performed with cells from different
donors and cell isolations. Unstimulated
values were set as 1.0. Results are
means ± SEM. Asterisks represent statisti-
cally significant differences, P < 0.05. (B)
TGF-b1 gene activation: samples are
unstimulated fibroblasts (C), fibroblasts
stimulated with ET-1 (E), fibroblasts stimula-

ted with TGF-b1 (T). Top panel: TGF-b1
detection, bottom panel: 18S detection
(loading control). The histograms represent
densitometric ratios of TGF-b1 signals
normalized to 18S signals from three to
seven independent experiments, performed
with cells from different donors and cell
isolations. Unstimulated values were set as
1.0. Results are means ± SEM. Asterisks
represent statistically significant differences,
P < 0.05.
A. Horstmeyer et al. ET-1 and TGF-b1 signalling
FEBS Journal 272 (2005) 6297–6309 ª 2005 The Authors Journal Compilation ª 2005 FEBS 6303
Our results indicate that in human primary dermal
fibroblasts ET-1 may mediate induced synthesis of col-
lagen I by activation of CTGF, which is not detectable
in unstimulated adult dermal fibroblasts [14]. Upon
activation by TGF-b1, CTGF acts in an autocrine
fashion as a strong inducer of collagen I synthesis
[3,14]. Further investigations should reveal if ET-1 eli-
cits induced collagen I synthesis solely via induction of
CTGF or via additional mechanisms as it is the case
for TGF-b1 stimulation [2,55]. In contrast to ET-1,
TGF-b1 induced persistent CTGF gene activation dur-
ing the stimulation period resulting in prolonged colla-
gen I synthesis, as described [41]. It seems that ET-1
and TGF- b1 show different properties in regulating
the induction of collagen I synthesis by CTGF.
Further examination of the intracellular signalling
mechanisms revealed an essential involvement of Gai,

PLD and PC-PLC. Their inhibition abolished ET-1
induced collagen I expression. The PC-phospholipases
are also important signalling intermediates for TGF-b1
induced collagen I synthesis. Furthermore, it has been
reported that ET-1 and TGF-b1 require PKC-d for
induction of collagen I [30,31,70], that may be activa-
ted by DAG derived from PLD and PC-PLC. Our
results demonstrate that the ET-1 and TGF-b1 signal-
ling pathways terminating in induced collagen I syn-
thesis overlap partially. This is in contrast to the early
postreceptor pathways, which differ between the
ET-receptors belonging to the family of G protein-cou-
pled receptors and the TGF-b1 receptors as members
of the serine-threonine kinase receptor group [1,24,25].
Here, we demonstrated an additive induction of col-
lagen I production by ET-1 and TGF-b1. We observed
an additive CTGF gene activation by both hormones
(data not shown). A further example of additive action
between ET-1 and TGF-b1 is induction of myofibro-
blast differentiation [71].
Some hormones acting in auto- and paracrine man-
ner are capable of inducing each other’s expression
[72]. In human primary dermal fibroblasts, however,
TGF-b1 neither induced the synthesis of ET-1 [71] nor
did ET-1 induce the synthesis of TGF-b1. The inter-
play between TGF-b1 and ET-1 therefore occurs
within their partly common intracellular signalling
pathway. However, their roles may diverge because of
differences in CTGF gene activation and the different
effects of PLD inhibition on collagen I levels.

Experimental procedures
Materials
Experimental material was purchased from the following
suppliers: ET-1 (human), BQ123, BQ788, TGF-b1 (human),
D609, U73122, Pertussis toxin (PTX), pepsin: Calbiochem-
Novabiochem, Bad Soden, Germany. PD156252, neomycin
trisulphate, magnesium salt of l-ascorbic acid 2- or 3-phos-
phate, Ponceau Red, Coomassie blue, N-butanol: Sigma-
Aldrich, Deisenhofen, Germany. [
125
I]ET-1: Amersham ⁄
Pharmacia Biotech, Freiburg, Germany. Human collagen I:
Sircoll, Cologne, Germany.
Cell culture
Primary human dermal fibroblasts were obtained by
explant culture from several biopsies of healthy skin of age-
and sex-matched adult donors. Fibroblasts were maintained
in Dulbecco’s modified Eagle’s medium (DMEM), supple-
mented with ascorbic acid (71 lg per mL), penicillin
(100 UÆmL
)1
), streptomycin (100 lgÆmL
)1
), 0.2 m glutamine
(all from Biochrom, Berlin, Germany) and fetal bovine
serum (10%, FBS; PAA, Linz, Austria) and cultured in the
humidified atmosphere of 5% CO
2
. Fibroblasts were sub-
cultured to confluence and used between passages 2–5.

Northern hybridization analysis
Fibroblasts were seeded at 5 · 10
4
cells per cm
2
into
100 mm dishes and cultured for 24 h followed by starvation
with FBS-free DMEM for 24 h. Thereafter, cells were cul-
tured in FBS-free DMEM in the absence or with either
Fig. 7. Long-term effects of ET-receptor gene activations by ET-1.
Human primary dermal fibroblasts were cultured without or with
100 n
M ET-1 for indicated times. RNA was isolated and 2 lg RNA
was reverse-transcribed and subjected to Q-PCR in presence of
specific primer pairs for the ETA- and the ETB-receptor. Signals
from three independent experiments were determined in triplicate
and normalized to b-actin, performed with cells from different
donors and cell isolations. Unstimulated values were set as 1.0.
Results are means ± SEM. Asterisks represent statistically signifi-
cant differences, P < 0.05.
ET-1 and TGF-b1 signalling A. Horstmeyer et al.
6304 FEBS Journal 272 (2005) 6297–6309 ª 2005 The Authors Journal Compilation ª 2005 FEBS
100 nm ET-1 or 180 pm TGF-b1 (daily addition) for the
indicated times. Total RNA was isolated using Qiagen
RNA columns (Qiagen, Hilden, Germany). Purified RNA
(2–5 lg per lane) was electrophoresed on formaldehyde
agarose gels running in Mops buffer (40 mm Mops, 10 mm
sodium acetate, 1 mm EDTA, pH 7.0) and transferred to
nylon membranes (Amersham ⁄ Pharmacia Biotech, Frei-
burg, Germany). Membranes were hybridized to an a-

32
P-
dCTP labelled 0.4 kbp human TGF-b1 or a 1.1 kbp human
CTFG cDNA probe using Hybrimax solution (Ambion,
Huntingdon, UK) according to the manufacturer’s instruc-
tions. RNA loading and transfer was evaluated by re-pro-
bing the membranes with an 18S ribosomal RNA cDNA
probe.
Real Time PCR (RT-PCR)
Two lg of purified RNA were reverse-transcribed by
reverse transcriptase core kit (Eurogentec, Cologne,
Germany) and subjected to PCR in the presence of
specific primer pairs (ETA-receptor: forward primer:
5¢-TGCCCTCAGTGAACATCTTAAGC-3¢, reverse pri-
mer: 5¢-TCCATTTCGTTATACACAGTTTTCTTC-3¢; ETB-
receptor: forward primer: 5¢-GCTGCACATCGTCATTGA
CAT-3¢, reverse primer: 5 ¢-GCACATAGACTCAGCA
CAGTGATT-3¢). Primer pairs yielded products of 135 bp
for the ETA-receptor and of 150 bp for the ETB-receptor.
The annealing temperature used was 60 °C and 40 cycles
were performed. PCR products were separated using
agarose gels containing ethidium bromide and signals
visualized under UV light.
For semiquantitative PCR (Q-PCR), RNA was reverse-
transcribed by qPCR core kit (Eurogentec Deutschland
GmbH, Cologne, Germany) and subjected to Q-PCR in the
presence of the specific ET-receptor subtype primer pairs in
addition to corresponding FAM-labelled probes (ETA-
receptor: 5¢-FAM-TGCTGGTTCCCTCTTCACTTAAG
CCG-3¢-TAMRA, ETB-RECEPTOR-receptor: 5¢-FAM-

CAGTCCTCTGCCAGCAGCTTGTAGACA-3¢-TAMRA)
using the Taq Man 7700 Sequence Detection System (ABI
Applied Biosystems, Darmstadt, Germany). Assays were
run in triplicates and normalized to b-actin (forward pri-
mer: 5¢-CTAGACTTCGAGCAAGAGATGG-3¢, reverse
primer: 5¢-ATAGAGGTCTTTACGGATGTCAAC-3¢,FAM
probe: 5¢-FAM-CAGCCTTCCTTCCTGGGTATGGAAT
CC-3¢-TAMRA).
Binding studies
Receptor binding and displacement studies were performed
as described [24]. Fibroblasts were seeded (5 · 10
4
cells per
cm
2
) into 96 well plates and cultured for 2 days. Cells were
washed 3 times with PBS at room temperature and incu-
bated with binding buffer (137 mm NaCl, 2.7 mm KCl,
6.5 mm Na
2
HPO
4
, 1.5 mm KH
2
PO
4
, pH 6.8) containing
[
125
I]ET-1 (25 pm) for 4 h at 4 °C. Non-specific binding

was determined in the presence of unlabelled ET-1
(200 nm).
For displacement studies, binding buffer contained either
the nonsubtype specific antagonist (PD156252), the ETA-
receptor selective antagonist (BQ123) or the ETB-receptor
selective antagonist (BQ788) over a concentration range of
0.1 pm)1 lm. After an incubation period of 4 h, cells were
rinsed with PBS (4 °C), treated with cell lysis buffer (1%
SDS, 0.1 N NaOH) for 10 min and the bound activity was
determined using a c-counter.
Collagen I synthesis
Fibroblasts were seeded (3 · 10
4
cells per cm
2
) into 35 mm
dishes and cultured for 24 h in full medium, which was
replaced by FBS-free DMEM (0.2 mL per cm
2
) with or
without hormones or inhibitors as indicated, and cells were
cultured for further 2 days ([73], modified protocol). Cul-
ture media were collected and 1800 lL of each medium
sample were incubated with pepsin (40 lgÆmL
)1
, at pH 2.5,
4 °C) overnight under rotation to cleave all proteins present
in the sample with the exception of collagen I. After TCA
precipitation (10% TCA, 0.1% Triton X-100), modification
of [74], samples of one experimental set were resuspended

with nonreducing SDS loading buffer and applied to one
gel for electrophoresis (6% polyacrylamide gel). Gels were
fixed and stained with Coomassie Brilliant Blue R B-0149
(0.25%, 10% acetic acid, 25% isopropanol), followed by
destaining with 10% acetic acid and 12.5% isopropanol.
As an indirect loading control, cells were counted before
and after stimulation to exclude that increased collagen I
amounts may result from different cell numbers instead of
the induction of collagen I synthesis.
Immunoblot analysis
To determine ET-receptor protein expression, fibroblasts
were seeded (5 · 10
4
cells per cm
2
) into 100 mm dishes and
cultured for 2 days. Then the cells were washed three times
with PBS and lysed with RIPA buffer (150 mm NaCl, 0.1%
SDS, 0.5% desoxycholate, 1% Nonidet P 40, 50 mm Tris-
HCl pH 8.0) to obtain total cell lysate or with membrane
buffer (10 mm KCl, 1.5 mm Mg
2
Cl, 1 mm EDTA, 1 mm
EGTA, 1 mm DTT, 20 mm Hepes, pH 7.5) to obtain mem-
brane fractions [75]. Samples were diluted in reducing SDS
loading buffer and subjected to 10% SDS ⁄ PAGE. Separ-
ated proteins were transferred to nitrocellulose membranes
(Amersham ⁄ Pharmacia Biotech, Freiburg, Germany).
Transfer efficiency was determined by Ponceau Red stain-
ing. Nitrocellulose membranes were blocked by incubation

with 5% nonfat dried milk (BioRAD, Mu
¨
nchen, Germany)
in PBS for 1 h at room temperature. Antigens were detec-
ted using polyclonal antibodies diluted 1 : 200 in PBS for
one h at room temperature [rabbit anti-(ETA receptor) IgG
A. Horstmeyer et al. ET-1 and TGF-b1 signalling
FEBS Journal 272 (2005) 6297–6309 ª 2005 The Authors Journal Compilation ª 2005 FEBS 6305
or rabbit anti-(ETB receptor) IgG, Chemicon, Hofheim,
Germany]. The specificities of both antibodies were demon-
strated [76–78].
To determine secreted collagen I, TCA-precipitated
pepsin-resistent proteins derived from cell culture media
were resuspended in nonreducing SDS-buffer and subjected
to precast 4–12% gradient Tris-glycine polyacrylamide gel
electrophoresis (anamed Elektrophoreses GmbH, Darms-
tadt, Germany). Separated proteins were transferred and
further processed for immunoblotting as described above.
Antigens were detected using antibodies diluted in PBS for
1 h at room temperature [1 : 100, rabbit anti-(collagen I)
IgG, Quartett, Berlin, Germany or 5 lgÆmL
)1
mouse anti-
(collagen I) IgG, clone CP17L, Calbiochem-Novabiochem,
Bad Soden, Germany].
Primary antibodies were visualized using species-specific
secondary horseradish peroxidase-conjugated antibodies
(IgG) diluted 1 : 3000 in PBS [mouse anti-(rabbit IgG) Ig
or swine anti-(mouse IgG) Ig, Dako, Hamburg, Germany].
Resulting antigen-antibody complexes were detected by

chemiluminescence using ECL kit (Amersham ⁄ Pharmacia
Biotech, Freiburg, Germany). Chemiluminescence signals
were recorded on X-ray films (Amersham ⁄ Pharmacia Bio-
tech, Freiburg, Germany).
Densitometrical analysis
Gels and X-ray films were analysed by scanning densitome-
try [Imager Fluor-S
TM
Multilmager (BioRAD, Heidelberg)].
The resulting data were evaluated using quantify one
4.0.3.
Densitometric values obtained from samples of unstimu-
lated and untreated human primary dermal fibroblasts were
statistically not different from values obtained from sam-
ples of pretreated and unstimulated human primary dermal
fibroblasts. However, the mean values of densitometric data
derived from unstimulated and untreated human primary
dermal fibroblasts of each experiment were set to a relative
value of ‘1’, serving as baseline value for the other data,
thereby representing the status of both groups of unstimu-
lated human primary dermal fibroblasts.
Statistical analysis
Statistical analysis was performed using GraphPad Prism
version 3.02. All data were expressed as means ± SEM
and statistically analysed using an unpaired t-test.
Acknowledgements
This study was supported by the Deutsche Fors-
chungsgemeinschaft (KR558 ⁄ 13 to TK) and by the
Koeln Fortune programme ⁄ Faculty of Medicine, Uni-
versity of Cologne (to TK and CL).

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