Arnold Michael Shankman Papers - Accession 259

The Arnold Shankman Papers are a treasure trove of historical research in a variety of areas. Within the American Civil War era, Shankman had extensively researched the “copperhead” movement of northern opposition to the war and was an expert on one of its leading members, Clement Vallandigham. Pursuing his interest in ethnic history, Dr. Shankman was a pioneer in the study of how ethnic and immigrant groups viewed each other. For example, he was one of the first to use early African-American newspapers to determine the views of blacks toward Italian immigrants and other groups. Shankman also was singularly instrumental in the publication of the speeches and writings of Marion Wright, a 20th century crusader for civil rights in North and South Carolina. Many of Mr. Wright’s papers are included within the Shankman files. In addition, Dr. Shankman’s papers include a wide variety of other interesting topics, many concerning the activities of individuals whose stories might have been lost otherwise. For example, Shankman’s papers include his research into the lives of Jewish immigrants to South Carolina in the late 19th and early 20th century, as well as the activism of women such as Dorothy Tilly, a Methodist and advocate for civil rights, and the Hicks sisters of Bainbridge, Georgia, who were early proponents of Socialism.https://digitalcommons.winthrop.edu/manuscriptcollection_findingaids/1095/thumbnail.jp

MicroRNA-dependent regulation of KLF4 by glucose in vascular smooth muscle

Diabetes is a major risk factor for cardiovascular disease and this is in part due to the effects of hyperglycemia on vascular smooth muscle cells. Small non-coding microRNAs are known to control smooth muscle phenotype and arterial contractility and are dysregulated in diabetes. The effect of microRNAs on smooth muscle differentiation is in part mediated by the transcription factor KLF4 but the role of this mechanism in diabetic vascular disease is not fully understood. Herein, we have investigated the importance of hyperglycemia and diabetes for the expression of KLF4 in vascular smooth muscle and the involvement of miRNAs in this regulation. Hyperglycemia down-regulated KLF4 in vascular smooth muscle cells and similar results were found in arteries of diabetic mice and patients. This correlated with a Foxa2-dependent up-regulation of miR-29c, which targeted KLF4 in vascular smooth muscle cells. Importantly, by preventing downregulation of KLF4, the induction of smooth muscle contractile protein markers by glucose was inhibited. In conclusion, miR-29 mediated inhibition of KLF4 in hyperglycemic conditions contributes to increased expression of contractile markers in vascular smooth muscle cells. Further studies are warranted to determine the therapeutic implications of miR-29 inhibition in diabetic vascular disease