GPR126 Protein Regulates Developmental and Pathological Angiogenesis through Modulation of VEGFR2 Receptor Signaling

Background: GPR126 plays critical roles in development, but its function in vessels is not well characterized. Results: GPR126 regulates angiogenesis by modulating endothelial cell proliferation and migration via regulation of Vegfr2 expression. Conclusion: GPR126 is important for physiological and pathological angiogenesis. Significance: This finding provides a new functional mechanism for the regulation of angiogenesis. Angiogenesis, the formation of new blood vessels from pre-existing ones, is essential for development, wound healing, and tumor progression. The VEGF pathway plays irreplaceable roles during angiogenesis, but how other signals cross-talk with and modulate VEGF cascades is not clearly elucidated. Here, we identified that Gpr126, an endothelial cell-enriched gene, plays an important role in angiogenesis by regulating endothelial cell proliferation, migration, and tube formation. Knockdown of Gpr126 in the mouse retina resulted in the inhibition of hypoxia-induced angiogenesis. Interference of Gpr126 expression in zebrafish embryos led to defects in intersegmental vessel formation. Finally, we identified that GPR126 regulated the expression of VEGFR2 by targeting STAT5 and GATA2 through the cAMP-PKA-cAMP-response element-binding protein signaling pathway during angiogenesis. Our findings illustrate that GPR126 modulates both physiological and pathological angiogenesis through VEGF signaling, providing a potential target for the treatment of angiogenesis-related diseases.