RhoA and its effectors, the transcriptional coactivators myocardin-related transcription factor (MRTF) and serum response factor (SRF), control epithelial phenotype and are indispensable for profibrotic epithelial reprogramming during fibrogenesis. Context-dependent control of RhoA and fibrosis-associated changes in its regulators, however, remain incompletely characterized. We previously identified the guanine nucleotide exchange factor GEF-H1 as a central mediator of RhoA activation in renal tubular cells exposed to inflammatory or fibrotic stimuli. Here we found that GEF-H1 expression and phosphorylation were strongly elevated in two animal models of fibrosis. In the Unilateral Ureteral Obstruction mouse kidney fibrosis model, GEF-H1 was upregulated predominantly in the tubular compartment. GEF-H1 was also elevated and phosphorylated in a rat pulmonary artery banding (PAB) model of right ventricular fibrosis. Prolonged stimulation of LLC-PK1 tubular cells with tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α or transforming growth factor (TGF)-β1 increased GEF-H1 expression and activated a luciferase-coupled GEF-H1 promoter. Knockdown and overexpression studies revealed that these effects were mediated by RhoA, cytoskeleton remodeling, and MRTF, indicative of a positive feedback cycle. Indeed, silencing endogenous GEF-H1 attenuated activation of the GEF-H1 promoter. Of importance, inhibition of MRTF using CCG-1423 prevented GEF-H1 upregulation in both animal models. MRTF-dependent increase in GEF-H1 was prevented by inhibition of the transcription factor Sp1, and mutating putative Sp1 binding sites in the GEF-H1 promoter eliminated its MRTF-dependent activation. As the GEF-H1/RhoA axis is key for fibrogenesis, this novel MRTF/Sp1-dependent regulation of GEF-H1 abundance represents a potential target for reducing renal and cardiac fibrosis.NEW & NOTEWORTHY We show that expression of the RhoA regulator GEF-H1 is upregulated in tubular cells exposed to fibrogenic cytokines and in animal models of kidney and heart fibrosis. We identify a pathway wherein GEF-H1/RhoA-dependent MRTF activation through its noncanonical partner Sp1 upregulates GEF-H1. Our data reveal the existence of a positive feedback cycle that enhances Rho signaling through control of both GEF-H1 activation and expression. This feedback loop may play an important role in organ fibrosis.
Keywords: Rho family small GTPases; epithelial reprogramming; guanine nucleotide exchange factors; organ fibrosis; tubular epithelium.