HSP22 suppresses diabetes-induced endothelial injury by inhibiting mitochondrial reactive oxygen species formation

The induction of mitochondrial reactive oxygen species (mtROS) by hyperglycemia is a key event responsible for endothelial activation and injury. Heat shock protein 22 (HSP22) is a stress-inducible protein associated with cytoprotection and apoptosis inhibition. However, whether HSP22 prevents hyperglycemia-induced vascular endothelial injury remains unclear. Here, we investigated whether HSP22 protects the vascular endothelium from hyperglycemia-induced injury by reducing mtROS production. We used a high-fat diet and streptozotocin injection model to induce type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM, metabolic syndrome) and exposed human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) to high glucose following overexpression or silencing of HSP22 to explore the role of HSP22. We found that HSP22 markedly inhibited endothelial cell activation and vascular lesions by inhibiting endothelial adhesion and decreasing cytokine secretion. We performed confocal microscopy and flow cytometry assays using HUVECs and showed that HSP22 attenuated mtROS and mitochondrial dysfunction in hyperglycemia-stimulated endothelial cells. Mechanistically, using the mtROS inhibitor MitoTEMPO, we demonstrated that HSP22 suppressed endothelial activation and injury by eliminating hyperglycemia-mediated increases in mtROS. Furthermore, we found that HSP22 maintained the balance of mitochondrial fusion and fission by mitigating mtROS in vitro. HSP22 attenuated the development of vascular lesions by suppressing mtROS-mediated endothelial activation in a T2DM mouse model. This study provides evidence that HSP22 may be a promising therapeutic target for vascular complications in T2DM.