Arterial calcification is a common feature of pseudoxanthoma elasticum (PXE), a disease characterized by ABCC6 mutations, inducing a deficiency in pyrophosphate, a key inhibitor of calcium phosphate crystallization in arteries.
Methods: we analyzed whether long-term exposure of Abcc6-/- mice (a murine model of PXE) to a mild vitamin D supplementation, with or without calcium, would impact the development of vascular calcification. Eight groups of mice (including Abcc6-/- and wild-type) received vitamin D supplementation every 2 weeks, a calcium-enriched diet alone (calcium in drinking water), both vitamin D supplementation and calcium-enriched diet, or a standard diet (controls) for 6 months. Aorta and kidney artery calcification was assessed by 3D-micro-computed tomography, Optical PhotoThermal IR (OPTIR) spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy coupled with energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (SEM-EDS) and Yasue staining.
Results: at 6 months, although vitamin D and/or calcium did not significantly increase serum calcium levels, vitamin D and calcium supplementation significantly worsened aorta and renal artery calcification in Abcc6-/- mice.
Conclusions: vitamin D and/or calcium supplementation accelerate vascular calcification in a murine model of PXE. These results sound a warning regarding the use of these supplementations in PXE patients and, to a larger extent, patients with low systemic pyrophosphate levels.
Keywords: ABCC6; calcification; calcium; pseudoxanthoma elasticum; pyrophosphate; vascular; vitamin D.