Wiley, FEBS Letters, 25(581), p. 4927-4931
DOI: 10.1016/j.febslet.2007.09.032
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Recent studies have highlighted the importance of paracrine growth factors as mediators of pro-angiogenic effects by endothelial progenitor cells (EPCs), but little is known about the release of lipid-based factors like endocannabinoids by EPCs. In the current study, the release of the endocannabinoids anandamide and 2-arachidonoylglycerol by distinct human EPC sub-types was measured using HPLC/tandem mass-spectrometry. Anandamide release was highest by adult blood colony-forming EPCs at baseline and they also demonstrated increased 2-arachidonoylglycerol release with TNF-alpha stimulation. Treatment of mature endothelial cells with endocannabinoids significantly reduced the induction of the pro-inflammatory adhesion molecule CD106 (VCAM-1) by TNF-alpha.