Svetlana Laidinen

Publications (12)63.05 Total impact

• Article: Antiangiogenic gene therapy with soluble VEGF-receptors -1, -2 and -3 together with paclitaxel prolongs survival of mice with human ovarian carcinoma.

  Minna Sopo, Maarit Anttila, Hanna Sallinen, Laura Tuppurainen, Anniina Laurema, Svetlana Laidinen, Kirsi Hamalainen, Pasi Tuunanen, Jonna K Koponen, Veli-Matti Kosma, Seppo Heinonen, Kari Alitalo, Seppo Yla-Herttuala
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  ABSTRACT: We compared effects of antiangiogenic gene therapy with a combination of soluble sVEGFR-1, sVEGFR-2 and sVEGFR-3 to chemotherapy with carboplatin and paclitaxel and to antiangiogenic monoclonal anti-VEGF-antibody bevacizumab in an intraperitoneal ovarian cancer xenograft model in mice (n = 80). Gene therapy was also combined with chemotherapy. Therapy was initiated when sizable tumors were confirmed in magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Adenovirus-mediated gene transfer was performed intravenously (2 × 109 pfu), while chemotherapy and monoclonal anti-VEGF-antibody were dosed intraperitoneally. The study groups were as follows: AdLacZ control (n = 21); combination of AdsVEGFR-1, -2 and -3 (n = 21); combination of AdsVEGFR-1, -2, -3 and paclitaxel (n = 9); bevacizumab (n = 14); paclitaxel (n = 9) and carboplatin (n = 5). Effectiveness was assessed by survival time and surrogate measures such as sequential MRI, immunohistochemistry, microvessel density and tumor growth. Antiangiogenic gene therapy combined with paclitaxel significantly prolonged the mean survival of mice (25 days) compared to the controls (15 days) and all other treatment groups (p = 0.001). Bevacizumab treatment did not have any significant effect on the survival. Tumors of the mice treated by gene therapy were significantly smaller than in the control group (p = 0.021). The mean vascular density and total vascular area were also significantly smaller in the tumors of the gene therapy group (p = 0.01). These results show potential of the antiangiogenic gene therapy to improve efficacy of chemotherapy with paclitaxel and support testing of this approach in a phase I clinical trial for the treatment of ovarian cancer.
  International Journal of Cancer 02/2012; 131(10):2394-401. · 5.44 Impact Factor
• Article: Lymphatic vasculature is increased in heart valves, ischaemic and inflamed hearts and in cholesterol‐rich and calcified atherosclerotic lesions

  Ivana Kholová, Galina Dragneva, Petra Čermáková, Svetlana Laidinen, Nina Kaskenpää, Thierry Hazes, Eva Čermáková, Ivo Šteiner, Seppo Ylä-Herttuala
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  ABSTRACT: Eur J Clin Invest 2011; 41 (5): 487–497AbstractBackground  Despite the importance of myocardial vasculature in many pathological conditions, little information is available about cardiac and coronary lymphatic vessels in normal and pathological conditions.Materials and methods  Vasculature was assessed by immunohistochemistry with CD 31 and lymphatic endothelium with markers podoplanin and LYVE-1 in 16 children and 20 adult autopsy hearts. Valve biopsies were collected from eight adults.Results  The highest number of lymphatics was found in valves in infective endocarditis, where they accounted nearly 100% of all vessels in certain areas. An increased number of lymphatics was also found in degenerative calcified stenosis, whereas the number was reduced in myxoid degeneration. Lymphatics grew in areas rich in extracellular matrix, whereas inflammatory cell–rich areas were more prone to angiogenesis. Progressive atherosclerotic lesions rich in calcium and cholesterol crystals revealed increased lymphangiogenesis in media. The highest number of myocardial lymphatics was found in epicardium of ischaemic hearts in both acute and chronic phase. Additionally, an increased number of lymphatics accompanied myocarditis and acute myocardial infarction.Conclusions  The highest number of lymphatics was found in valves in infective endocarditis. Increases in lymphatics also accompanied major cardiac pathological changes, such as acute and chronic ischaemia, progressive atherosclerosis, myocarditis and hypertrophy. Thus, blocking of excess lymphangiogenesis might be useful in progressive atherosclerosis, whereas stimulation of lymphatic vascular growth and function might be useful in cardiac hypertrophy and heart failure.
  European Journal of Clinical Investigation 12/2010; 41(5):487 - 497. · 3.02 Impact Factor
• Article: Preoperative angiopoietin-2 serum levels: a marker of malignant potential in ovarian neoplasms and poor prognosis in epithelial ovarian cancer.

  Hanna Sallinen, Tommi Heikura, Svetlana Laidinen, Veli-Matti Kosma, Seppo Heinonen, Seppo Ylä-Herttuala, Maarit Anttila
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  ABSTRACT: The aims of the study were to explore the levels of angiopoietin-1 (Ang-1) and angiopoietin-2 (Ang-2) in patients with benign, borderline, or malignant epithelial ovarian tumors and to compare them to those of healthy controls. In addition, we aimed to study how Ang-1 and Ang-2 levels predict the clinical course and survival of patients with epithelial ovarian cancer. We enrolled 150 patients with ovarian neoplasms and 34 women with healthy ovaries in this study. Furthermore, we measured the levels of Ang-1 and Ang-2 in patients having an ovarian metastasis or another cancer (n = 29). Serum samples were collected preoperatively at the time of diagnosis, and Ang-1 and Ang-2 levels were measured with an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Angiopoietin-1 and Ang-2 levels were significantly elevated in serum samples of patients with ovarian carcinoma compared with healthy controls (P = 0.0005 and P < 0.0005, respectively). In addition, Ang-2 levels were significantly higher in patients with ovarian carcinoma compared with patients with benign (P < 0.0005) or borderline ovarian tumors (P = 0.011). In receiver operating characteristic analysis, the area under the curve for serum Ang-2 (0.77) was greater than Ang-1 (0.60) but lower than for cancer antigen 125 (0.95) to differentiate ovarian cancer from healthy control. High serum levels of Ang-1 and Ang-2 were associated with primary residual tumor more than 1 cm after debulking surgery, and high Ang-2 levels correlated positively with an advanced tumor stage (P = 0.042). Elevated Ang-2 level (>2.7 ng/mL) was a significant predictor of poor overall and recurrence-free survival (P = 0.043 and P = 0.033, respectively) when assessing Kaplan-Meier curves by a log-rank test. Patients with ovarian cancer have higher serum levels of angiopoietins than patients with benign or borderline tumors reflecting the increased angiogenesis. These results also suggest that Ang-2 may serve as an angiogenic marker of decreased patient survival in ovarian cancer.
  International Journal of Gynecological Cancer 12/2010; 20(9):1498-505. · 1.65 Impact Factor
• Article: Lymphatic vasculature is increased in heart valves, ischaemic and inflamed hearts and in cholesterol-rich and calcified atherosclerotic lesions.

  Ivana Kholová, Galina Dragneva, Petra Cermáková, Svetlana Laidinen, Nina Kaskenpää, Thierry Hazes, Eva Cermáková, Ivo Steiner, Seppo Ylä-Herttuala
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  ABSTRACT: Despite the importance of myocardial vasculature in many pathological conditions, little information is available about cardiac and coronary lymphatic vessels in normal and pathological conditions. Vasculature was assessed by immunohistochemistry with CD 31 and lymphatic endothelium with markers podoplanin and LYVE-1 in 16 children and 20 adult autopsy hearts. Valve biopsies were collected from eight adults. The highest number of lymphatics was found in valves in infective endocarditis, where they accounted nearly 100% of all vessels in certain areas. An increased number of lymphatics was also found in degenerative calcified stenosis, whereas the number was reduced in myxoid degeneration. Lymphatics grew in areas rich in extracellular matrix, whereas inflammatory cell-rich areas were more prone to angiogenesis. Progressive atherosclerotic lesions rich in calcium and cholesterol crystals revealed increased lymphangiogenesis in media. The highest number of myocardial lymphatics was found in epicardium of ischaemic hearts in both acute and chronic phase. Additionally, an increased number of lymphatics accompanied myocarditis and acute myocardial infarction. The highest number of lymphatics was found in valves in infective endocarditis. Increases in lymphatics also accompanied major cardiac pathological changes, such as acute and chronic ischaemia, progressive atherosclerosis, myocarditis and hypertrophy. Thus, blocking of excess lymphangiogenesis might be useful in progressive atherosclerosis, whereas stimulation of lymphatic vascular growth and function might be useful in cardiac hypertrophy and heart failure.
  European Journal of Clinical Investigation 12/2010; 41(5):487-97. · 3.02 Impact Factor
• Article: Capillary enlargement, not sprouting angiogenesis, determines beneficial therapeutic effects and side effects of angiogenic gene therapy.

  Petra Korpisalo, Jarkko P Hytönen, Johannes T T Laitinen, Svetlana Laidinen, Henna Parviainen, Henna Karvinen, Jaana Siponen, Varpu Marjomäki, Ismo Vajanto, Tuomas T Rissanen, Seppo Ylä-Herttuala
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  ABSTRACT: Currently, it is still unclear which mechanisms drive metabolic benefits after angiogenic gene therapy. The side-effect profile of efficient angiogenic gene therapy is also currently incompletely understood. In this study, the effects of increasing doses of adenoviral (Ad) vascular endothelial growth factor-A (VEGF-A) were evaluated on vascular growth, metabolic benefits, and systemic side effects. Adenoviral vascular endothelial growth factor-A or AdLacZ control was injected intramuscularly (10(9)-10(11) vp/mL) or intra-arterially (5 × 10(11) vp/mL) into rabbit (n = 102) hindlimb muscles and examined 6 or 14 days later. Blood flow, tissue oedema, metabolic benefits, and the structure of angiogenic vessels were assessed using ultrasound imaging, modified Miles assay, arterial blood gas and metabolite analyses, and light and confocal microscopy, respectively. Safety analyses included cardiac ultrasound, electrocardiograms, and blood and tissue samples. Sprouting angiogenesis was already induced with low AdVEGF-A concentrations, whereas higher concentrations were needed to reach efficient capillary enlargement and increases in target muscle perfusion. Interestingly, metabolic benefits, such as improved aerobic energy metabolism and decreased metabolic acidosis during exercise, after AdVEGF-A administration were highly correlated to the level of capillary enlargement but not to sprouting angiogenesis. Several systemic dose-dependent side effects, including transient increases in liver, kidney, and pancreatic enzymes, and signs of cardiac effects were observed. Efficient capillary enlargement leading to significant increases in tissue perfusion is needed to gain metabolic benefits after angiogenic gene therapy. However, the risk of systemic side effects can increase as the efficiency of angiogenic gene therapy is improved. Importantly, the unstable wall structure of the newly formed vessels seems not to compromise the metabolic benefits.
  European Heart Journal 12/2010; 32(13):1664-72. · 10.48 Impact Factor
• Article: Intravitreal adenoviral 15-lipoxygenase-1 gene transfer prevents vascular endothelial growth factor A-induced neovascularization in rabbit eyes.

  Helena Viita, Kati Kinnunen, Emmi Eriksson, Johanna Lähteenvuo, Mohan Babu, Giedrius Kalesnykas, Tommi Heikura, Svetlana Laidinen, Teemu Takalo, Seppo Ylä-Herttuala
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  ABSTRACT: Excessive angiogenesis mediated by vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) plays an important role in angioproliferative ocular diseases. We have previously developed a large animal model for these diseases by intravitreal adenoviral gene transfer of VEGF-A(165). 15-Lipoxygenase-1 (15-LO-1), an oxidizing enzyme producing reactive lipid hydroperoxides, has been shown to induce aberrant angiogenesis in cancer models of transgenic mice overexpressing human 15-LO-1. Our purpose was to study the effects of 15-LO-1 on VEGF-A(165)-induced angiogenesis in New Zealand White rabbit eyes, using intravitreal adenovirus-mediated gene transfers. AdCMV and Adh15-LO-1 alone served as controls. As determined by immunohistochemistry, VEGF-A(165) significantly increased the number and size of the capillaries in various compartments of the eyes. 15-LO-1 efficiently inhibited VEGF-A(165)-induced neovascularization and pathological changes by reducing VEGF-A(165) mRNA and protein expression, determined by RT-PCR, ELISA, and immunohistochemistry. 15-LO-1, which produces endogenous ligands for peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-gamma (PPARgamma), also prevented VEGF-A(165)-induced expression of PPARgamma and VEGF receptor-2, as measured by quantitative RT-PCR. In conclusion, our findings show that 15-LO-1 prevents VEGF-A(165)-induced angiogenesis and consequent pathology in the eyes, suggesting that intravitreal 15-LO-1 gene transfer could be a potential new strategy for the treatment of neovascular complications in the eyes.
  Human gene therapy 08/2009; 20(12):1679-86. · 4.20 Impact Factor
• Article: Differences in retinal neovascular tissue and vitreous humour in patients with type 1 and type 2 diabetes.

  K Kinnunen, T Puustjärvi, M Teräsvirta, P Nurmenniemi, T Heikura, S Laidinen, T Paavonen, H Uusitalo, S Ylä-Herttuala
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  ABSTRACT: The aim of the study was to evaluate the histopathology of neovascular tufts and vitreous samples collected from patients with diabetes. Vitreous samples and neovascular tufts were collected from patients with type 1 (n = 13) and (n = 17) type 2 diabetes with proliferative retinopathy, and from controls with a macular hole (n = 5). Neovessels were analysed using immunohistochemistry and vitreous samples with an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). The main outcome measure was to examine differences in the levels of growth factors in patients with type 1 and type 2 diabetes with proliferative retinopathy. Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF)-A was most strongly present in the samples from patients with type 1 diabetes. In type 2 diabetes, VEGF-D was more abundantly present than in type 1 diabetes. Angiopoietin (ANG)-2 was also abundantly present. Macrophages and nuclear factor kappa B (NFkappaB) were found, indicating the presence of an inflammatory process in the neovascular tissues. VEGF-A and ANG-2 are equally important in the neovascular process in both type 1 and type 2 diabetes. VEGF-D is abundantly present in type 2 diabetes. In order to achieve better control of diabetic retinopathy, it might be beneficial to develop treatments that prevent the actions of ANG-2 and VEGF-D.
  The British journal of ophthalmology 04/2009; 93(8):1109-15. · 2.92 Impact Factor
• Article: Baculovirus is an efficient vector for the transduction of the eye: comparison of baculovirus- and adenovirus-mediated intravitreal vascular endothelial growth factor D gene transfer in the rabbit eye.

  Kati Kinnunen, Giedrius Kalesnykas, Anssi J Mähönen, Svetlana Laidinen, Liisa Holma, Tommi Heikura, Kari Airenne, Hannu Uusitalo, Seppo Ylä-Herttuala
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  ABSTRACT: The present study aimed to determine the efficiency and safety of baculovirus-mediated intravitreal gene transfer in rabbit eye and to compare its efficiency with adenovirus. We also studied how an intravitreal injection of vectors producing vascular endothelial growth factor D (VEGF-D) impacts the vasculature of rabbit eye. Baculoviral (BacVEGF-D) or adenoviral VEGF-D (AdVEGF-D) were administered intravitreally into the right eye at different doses (10(8), 10(9) and 10(10) IU/ml) to 24 animals. Left eyes were injected with control viruses. To determine how long transgene expression lasted, we injected BacVEGF-D or BacLacZ to the vitreous humour of 11 animals and followed them for 4 weeks. Vitreous samples were taken after sacrifice for enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays and eyes were removed and fixed for histological analyses. Both baculoviruses and adenoviruses caused efficient expression of VEGF-D in the rabbit eyes. BacVEGF-D caused a dose-dependent vascular leakage and a moderate dilation of the capillaries. The highest effect was seen 6 days after gene transfer and was detectable for 2 weeks. Intravitreal injection of baculovirus caused expression of VEGF-D in the inner retina, photoreceptor cells and in retinal pigment epithelium cells, whereas adenovirus-mediated VEGF-D expression was detected in the nerve fiber layer and ganglion cell layer. Baculovirus caused a transient inflammation similar to adenoviruses. The study suggests that baculoviruses are efficient vectors for ocular gene transfer, especially if deeper retinal layers need to be transduced. In addition, intravitreal VEGF-D gene transfer caused blood-retina barrier breakdown but not neovessel formation in the rabbit eye.
  The Journal of Gene Medicine 03/2009; 11(5):382-9. · 2.48 Impact Factor
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  Available from: Tommi Heikura

  Article: Differences between type 1 and type 2 diabetics in retinal neovascular tissue and vitreous humour

  Kati Kinnunen Md, Tuomo Puustjärvi, Markku Teräsvirta, Piia Nurmenniemi Md, Tommi Heikura Msc, Svetlana Laidinen, Msc, Timo Paavonen, Hannu Uusitalo, Seppo Ylä-Herttuala
  British Journal of Ophthalmology. 01/2009; 93(8).
• Article: Therapeutic angiogenesis with placental growth factor improves exercise tolerance of ischaemic rabbit hindlimbs.

  Petra Korpisalo, Tuomas T Rissanen, Timo Bengtsson, Timo Liimatainen, Svetlana Laidinen, Henna Karvinen, Johanna E Markkanen, Olli H Gröhn, Seppo Ylä-Herttuala
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  ABSTRACT: We investigated the effects of angiogenic gene therapy with adenoviral placental growth factor(131) (AdPlGF) on aerobic capacity and exercise tolerance in a rabbit hindlimb ischaemia model. We also assessed whether strong angiogenic changes such as capillary arterialization and formation of artery-venous shunts compromise oxygen transport to target tissues resulting in suboptimal therapeutic efficacy. Hindlimb ischaemia was surgically induced in New Zealand White rabbits (n = 20) that a day later received intramuscular (i.m.) AdPlGF or AdLacZ (3 x 10(11)vp) gene transfer (GT). Corresponding GTs were also done in healthy non-ischaemic rabbits (n = 10). Muscle energy metabolism and skeletal muscle perfusion were studied non-invasively before GT and at 6 and 28 days using (31)P-magnetic resonance spectroscopy and contrast pulse sequence ultrasound, respectively. Oedema was quantified using modified Miles assay at sacrifice. AdPlGF increased perfusion 7.8-fold and improved aerobic capacity of ischaemic limbs 45% compared with AdLacZ controls (P < 0.05) at 6 days. In non-ischaemic limbs, strong angiogenic response to GT, including capillary arterialization and acute oedema, did not impair muscle energy metabolism. This study shows that proangiogenic gene therapy can significantly improve performance of ischaemic limbs and supports the concept of therapeutic angiogenesis for the treatment of patients with ischaemia.
  Cardiovascular Research 11/2008; 80(2):263-70. · 6.06 Impact Factor
• Article: 15-lipoxygenase-1 prevents vascular endothelial growth factor A- and placental growth factor-induced angiogenic effects in rabbit skeletal muscles via reduction in growth factor mRNA levels, NO bioactivity, and downregulation of VEGF receptor 2 expression.

  Helena Viita, Johanna Markkanen, Emmi Eriksson, Markku Nurminen, Kati Kinnunen, Mohan Babu, Tommi Heikura, Sanna Turpeinen, Svetlana Laidinen, Teemu Takalo, Seppo Ylä-Herttuala
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  ABSTRACT: Human 15-lipoxygenase-1 (15-LO-1) is an oxidizing enzyme capable of producing reactive lipid hydroperoxides. 15-LO-1 and its products have been suggested to be involved in many pathological conditions, such as inflammation, atherogenesis, and carcinogenesis. We used adenovirus-mediated gene transfers to study the effects of 15-LO-1 on vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF)-A165- and placental growth factor (PlGF)-induced angiogenesis in rabbit skeletal muscles. 15-LO-1 significantly decreased all angiogenic effects induced by these growth factors, including capillary perfusion, vascular permeability, vasodilatation, and an increase in capillary number. The effects are attributable to the reduction in the amount of VEGF-A165 and PlGF transcripts by 15-LO-1, resulting in reduced protein expression. The most likely mediator of the VEGF family-induced capillary vasodilatation is nitric oxide (NO), which is produced by NO synthases. Endothelial NO synthase protein expression and NO synthase activity were significantly induced by VEGF-A165, and these inductions were reduced by 15-LO-1. VEGF-A165 induces its angiogenic effects primarily via vascular endothelial growth factor receptor (VEGFR)2, and also PlGF mediates angiogenic signaling via VEGFR2, even though it binds to VEGFR1. VEGFR2 expression is induced by peroxisome proliferator-activating receptor . We showed by quantitative RT-PCR and immunohistochemistry that expression of endogenous rabbit peroxisome proliferator-activating receptor and VEGFR2 were significantly increased in the growth factor-transduced muscles, but these inductions were efficiently prevented by 15-LO-1. In conclusion, the results suggest that expression of 15-LO-1 has an efficient antiangiogenic effect in vivo via reduction in growth factor mRNA levels, NO bioactivity, and VEGFR2 expression.
  Circulation Research 03/2008; 102(2):177-84. · 9.49 Impact Factor
• Article: High-resolution ultrasound perfusion imaging of therapeutic angiogenesis.

  Tuomas T Rissanen, Petra Korpisalo, Henna Karvinen, Timo Liimatainen, Svetlana Laidinen, Olli H Gröhn, Seppo Ylä-Herttuala
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  ABSTRACT: The purpose of this study was to test the feasibility of contrast pulse sequence (CPS) ultrasound imaging for high-resolution perfusion imaging after gene transfer (GT) for therapeutic angiogenesis. Imaging modalities capable of accurate and feasible perfusion measurement are essential for the preclinical and clinical development of therapeutic angiogenesis. However, current methods suffer from compromises between spatial and temporal resolution and sensitivity. Contrast pulse sequence ultrasound is a recently developed real-time perfusion imaging method that generates high-contrast agent-to-tissue specificity and spatial resolution. Contrast pulse sequence ultrasound was used to noninvasively assess parameters of blood flow 6 days after adenoviral vascular endothelial growth factor (AdVEGF) GT in rabbit and mouse hind limbs with bolus intravenous injection of a microbubble contrast medium. Blood volume, mean transit time, perfusion, and time to the arrival of the contrast bolus were calculated with the gamma variate function. Contrast-enhanced power Doppler ultrasound (CEU), dynamic contrast-enhanced (DCE) magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), and histological capillary measurements were used as reference methods. Blood volume and perfusion increased over 40- and 20-fold, respectively, 6 days after AdVEGF GT in rabbit skeletal muscles. Perfusion values measured with CPS correlated well with those obtained with CEU (r = 0.975) and DCE-MRI (r = 0.854). However, CPS provided superior spatial and temporal resolution showing blood flow in vessels of only 10 to 20 mum in diameter. Contrast pulse sequence ultrasound was also feasible for imaging of therapeutic angiogenesis in mouse hind limbs both at the arterial and capillary levels. The CPS ultrasound revealed that AdVEGF mainly induces angiogenesis in adipose tissue rather than in the skeletal muscle of mouse hind limbs. Contrast pulse sequence ultrasound is an efficient and accurate noninvasive real-time perfusion imaging modality in small laboratory animals and also offers a means for the assessment of muscle perfusion in future clinical trials of therapeutic angiogenesis.
  JACC. Cardiovascular imaging 02/2008; 1(1):83-91. · 14.29 Impact Factor