IFN ‐γ enhances the wound healing effect of late EPC s ( LEPC s) via BST 2‐mediated adhesion to endothelial cells

Circulating late endothelial progenitor cells ( LEPC s) home to injured vessels, initiating blood vessel regeneration. This process requires the initial adhesion of LEPC s to endothelial cells within the wounded site. In this study, treating LEPC s with IFN ‐γ enhanced wound healing through BST 2‐mediated adhesion to endothelial cells. We found that IFN ‐γ significantly upregulated BST 2 expression in both LEPC s and EC s and increased tube formation in LEPC s. Upregulated BST 2 increased LEPC adhesion to EC s through a tight homophilic interaction of its extracellular domain. Finally, when the IFN ‐γ‐treated LEPC s were injected into the wounded mouse tail vein, superior therapeutic effects of wound closure were observed. This study provides a useful application to enhance the adhesion of LEPC s for vessel regeneration and wound closure.