Targeting ZONAB to better understand inflammation and blood vessel formation

ZONAB controls endothelial actin cytoskeleton and genes important for angiogenesis and inflammation (Ms Eleanor Lynam)

The insides of blood vessels are made up of a thin sheet of cells, called endothelial cells, which form a barrier between the passing blood and the vessel wall. Endothelial cells have many functions, from responding to stimuli within the blood to directing the growth of new blood vessels. Understanding how endothelial cells communicate can help us understand how endothelial cells manage these functions. BHF-funded researcher Professor Dr Balda wants to find out what is happening at specialised meeting points between these cells, known as tight junctions. She has been investigating the tight junction protein ZO-1, which regulates cell-cell tension, cell movement and the growth of blood vessel. She and her team have discovered that ZO-1 associates with several proteins whose functions are not currently known, including one called ZONAB. As part of this project Professor Dr Balda will be supervising a PhD student to find out how ZONAB regulates endothelial cell behaviour. They will look at processes such as inflammation and how it helps form new blood vessels and maintain the vessels’ structure and integrity. Understanding the molecular details of such processes will help to develop new ways to treat diseases like diabetes and arteriosclerosis, a disease in which the walls of arteries thicken and harden.