Inhibition of polyamine uptake potentiates the anti-proliferative effect of polyamine synthesis inhibition and preserves the contractile phenotype of vascular smooth muscle cells.
Increased vascular smooth muscle cell (VSMC) proliferation is a factor in atherosclerosis and injury-induced arterial (re)stenosis. Inhibition of polyamine synthesis by α-difluoro-methylornithine (DFMO), an irreversible inhibitor of ornithine decarboxylase, attenuates VSMC proliferation with high sensitivity and specificity. However, cells can escape polyamine synthesis blockade by importing polya