Embryological-Origin–Dependent Differences in Homeobox Expression in Adult Aorta

Abstract

Our findings support a model of Hox6-10-specified positional identity in the adult vasculature that is established by embryonic cues independently of environmental factors and is conserved in different mammalian species. Differential homeobox gene expression contributes to maintaining phenotypic differences between SMCs from athero-resistant and athero-susceptible regions, at least in part through feedback regulatory mechanisms involving inflammatory mediators, for example, reciprocal inhibition between HOXA9 and NF-κB.