Sci Signal

Phosphoinositide 3-kinases (PI3Ks) phosphorylate intracellular inositol lipids to regulate signaling and intracellular vesicular trafficking. Mammals have eight PI3K isoforms, of which class I PI3K alpha and class II PI3K-C2 alpha are essential for vascular development. The class II PI3K-C2 beta is also abundant in endothelial cells. Using in vivo and in vitro approaches, we found that PI3K-C2 beta was a critical regulator of blood vessel growth by restricting endothelial mTORC1 signaling. Mice expressing a kinase-inactive form of PI3K-C2 beta displayed enlarged blood vessels without corresponding changes in endothelial cell proliferation or migration. Instead, inactivation of PI3K-C2 beta resulted in an increase in the size of endothelial cells, particularly in the sprouting zone of angiogenesis. Mechanistically, we showed that the aberrantly large size of PI3K-C2 beta mutant endothelial cells was caused by mTORC1 activation, which sustained growth in these cells. Consistently, pharmacological inhibition of mTORC1 with rapamycin normalized vascular morphogenesis in PI3K-C2 beta mutant mice. Together, these results identify PI3K-C2 beta as a crucial determinant of endothelial signaling and illustrate the importance of mTORC1 regulation during angiogenic growth.