The Effects of Nutrient Availability and O-GlcNAcylation on Pericyte Differentiation Fate

Pericytes are mural cells on the surface of capillaries, which may have the capacity to differentiate into various lineages. However, the factors that could determine their differentiation fate remain to be determined. I hypothesized that nutrient availability, O-GlcNAcylation status, and metabolic stress could alter pericyte phenotype. In my experiments, I used mesenchymal cells from the skeletal muscle of C57B16/J mice as a model, due to the similarity in the characteristics of mesenchymal cells and pericytes. My data showed that Zfp423 protein levels are higher when exposed to normal glucose levels (5 mM), compared to high glucose levels (25 mM), which leads to higher fat droplet formation in mesenchymal cells. However, my data did not support the influence of O-GlcNAcylation on adipogenesis. Lastly, I observed that Transforming growth factor-β1 could potentially induce myocyte-looking cell formation. This finding provides an insight into how nutrient availability could influence the differentiation potential of pericytes.