Background and purpose
Vascular tone is regulated by the relative contractile state of vascular
smooth muscle cells (VSMCs). Several integrins directly modulate VSMC
contraction by regulating calcium influx through L-type voltage-gated
Ca2+ channels (VGCCs). Genetic variants inITGA9 , which encodes the α9 subunit of integrin α9β1, andSVEP1 , a ligand for integrin α9β1, associate with elevated blood
pressure, however, neither SVEP1 nor integrin α9β1 have reported roles
in vasoregulation. We therefore determined whether SVEP1 and integrin
α9β1 can regulate VSMC contraction.