Fig. 1.

Cadherin 11 (CDH11) regulates the aortic valve interstitial cell (AVIC) phenotype through smooth muscle α-actin (α-SMA), collagen deposition, cadherin switching, and inflammation. Loss of CDH11 reduced population-level contractility (A) despite an inverse relationship with α-SMA (B and C). Collagen deposition was correlated with CDH11 expression (D). Loss of CDH11 resulted in an upregulation of CDH2 (E), and IL-6 secretion was only measurable in wild-type (WT) AVICs (F). For clarity, representative Western blots have been cropped to display relevant staining. *P < 0.05 compared with WT cells unless otherwise indicated. 2-D, two dimensional.