Ablation of immunoproteasome β5i subunit suppresses hypertensive retinopathy by blocking ATRAP degradation in mice

Abstract Inflammation is associated with retinal diseases. Our recent data demonstrate that immunoproteasome catalytic subunit β2i contributes to angiotensin II (Ang II)–induced retinopathy in mice. Here, we investigated the role of another catalytic subunit β5i in regulating retinopathy and its underlying mechanisms. We induced a murine model of retinopathy by infusing Ang II (3000 ng/kg/minute) for 3 weeks into wild-type (WT) mice, β5i-knockout (KO) mice or WT mice injected with either adenovirus-expressing β5i (Ad-β5i) or angiotensin II type I receptor (AT1R)–associated protein (Ad-ATRAP), which inhibits AT1R. The β5i expression and chymotrypsin-like activity were most significantly elevated in Ang II–infused retinas and serum from patients with hypertensive retinopathy. Moreover, Ang II infusion–induced retinopathy was markedly attenuated in β5i-KO mice but aggravated in Ad-β5i–injected mice. Accordingly, β5i KO markedly restored Ang II–induced downregulation of ATRAP and activation of AT1R downstream mediators, which was further enhanced in Ad-β5i–injected mice. Interestingly, overexpression of ATRAP significantly abrogated Ang II–induced retinopathy in Ad-β5i–injected mice. This study found that β5i promoted Ang II–induced retinopathy by promoting ATRAP degradation and activation of AT1R-mediated signals.