Research Group

Elia Group

Vascular Epigenetics Lab

Elia Group

Leonardo Elia

Group Leader

Our group aims at understanding the involvement of epigenetics in the development of vascular diseases, by studying new molecular pathways that regulate vascular smooth muscle and endothelial cell biology and in which DNA methylation, histone modifications, and non-coding RNAs expression play a major role.

The challenge

All vascular pathologies belong to the vast category of cardiovascular diseases (CVDs), that are responsible for 31% of global deaths and constitute and are the main cause of death and disability worldwide. Regardless of the specific vascular pathology, altered genes expression – and thus epigenetic mechanisms – are central to disease initiation and progression. Although current knowledge regarding epigenetic mechanisms in CVD development is still limited, the dramatic improvement in DNA and RNA sequencing capacity has accelerated our ability to detail the complex epigenetic landscapes of multiple pathological contexts, paving the way to the translation of the first discoveries to the clinic.

Main research areas

Non-coding RNAs in vascular cell biology

Early work conducted at the University of California, San Diego, was the first to demonstrate that small non-coding RNAs (namely, miR-143 and miR-145) are necessary for maintaining the contractile phenotype of vascular smooth cells (VSMCs) and, thus, regulate vascular tone and functionality in pathological conditions. This finding was fundamental in seeding the new concept of the centrality of these cells in cardiovascular disease development and for the recent discoveries that miRNAs also act as communication molecules, modulating vascular endothelial cell and macrophage functionalities by migrating directly from one cell type to another.

Epigenetics and vascular diseases

We are interested in how pathological stimuli alter gene expression through chromatin remodeling and how such mechanisms are involved in vascular disease development. We recently identified two proteins that play a key role in vascular smooth muscle cells biology leveraging on epigenetics mechanisms: a DNA methylation reader that plays a fundamental role in the regulation of VSMCs plasticity both in physiology and in vascular disease, and a gene transcription regulator that appears to play a key role in vascular inflammation.

Selected publications

Barbieri F
BMJ Case Rep
Vascular malformation rupture in a patient affected by Costello syndrome.
Farina FM
Eur Heart J
The epigenetic enzyme DOT1L orchestrates vascular smooth muscle cell-monocyte crosstalk and protects against atherosclerosis via the NF-κB pathway.
Wu SM
Br J Pharmacol
Aggravation of pulmonary fibrosis after knocking down the aryl hydrocarbon receptor in the insulin-like growth factor 1 receptor pathway.
Hall IF
EMBO Mol Med
rs41291957 controls miR-143 and miR-145 expression and impacts coronary artery disease risk.
Mingardi J
Neurobiol Stress
miR-9-5p is involved in the rescue of stress-dependent dendritic shortening of hippocampal pyramidal neurons induced by acute antidepressant treatment with ketamine.
Farina FM
Circ Res
miR-128-3p Is a Novel Regulator of Vascular Smooth Muscle Cell Phenotypic Switch and Vascular Diseases.
Stratton MS
J Mol Cell Cardiol
Epigenetics and vascular diseases.
Hall IF
Circ Res
Circ_Lrp6, a Circular RNA Enriched in Vascular Smooth Muscle Cells, Acts as a Sponge Regulating miRNA-145 Function.
Elia L
Int J Biochem Cell Biol
The involvement of epigenetics in vascular disease development.
Elia L
J Clin Invest
UHRF1 epigenetically orchestrates smooth muscle cell plasticity in arterial disease.
Farina FM
Cell Death Dis
MicroRNA-26a/cyclin-dependent kinase 5 axis controls proliferation, apoptosis and in vivo tumor growth of diffuse large B-cell lymphoma cell lines.
Arosio P
IUBMB Life
Ferritin, cellular iron storage and regulation.
Elia L
Front Cardiovasc Med
Epigenetics and Vascular Diseases: Influence of Non-coding RNAs and Their Clinical Implications.
Kallikourdis M
Nat Commun
T cell costimulation blockade blunts pressure overload-induced heart failure.
Elia L
Cardiovasc Res
Circular RNAs and heart failure: new players for an old disease.
Elia L
Cardiovasc Res
MicroRNAs and pulmonary hypertension: a tight link.
Climent M
Circ Res
TGFβ Triggers miR-143/145 Transfer From Smooth Muscle Cells to Endothelial Cells, Thereby Modulating Vessel Stabilization.
Sala F
Thromb Haemost
MiR-143/145 deficiency attenuates the progression of atherosclerosis in Ldlr-/-mice.
Castaldi A
Circ Res
MicroRNA-133 modulates the β1-adrenergic receptor transduction cascade.

Group members

Elia Group
Montserrat Climent Salarich

Postdoc fellow

Elia Group
Leonardo Elia

Group Leader

Elia Group
Luca Lambroia

Bioinformatician

Elia Group
Alfonso Tramontano

Postdoc fellow

Elia Group
Stefania Zani

Postdoc fellow