Cardiac function modulates endocardial cell dynamics to shape the cardiac outflow tract.

Physical forces are important participants in the cellular dynamics that shape developing organs. During heart formation, for example, contractility and blood flow generate biomechanical cues that influence patterns of cell behavior. Here, we address the interplay between function and form during the assembly of the cardiac outflow tract (OFT), a crucial connection between the heart and vasculature that develops while circulation is under way. In zebrafish, we find that the OFT expands via accrual of both endocardial and myocardial cells. However, when cardiac function is disrupted, OFT endocardial growth ceases, accompanied by reduced proliferation and reduced addition of cells from adjacent vessels. The flow-responsive TGFß receptor Acvrl1 is required for addition of endocardial cells, but not for their proliferation, indicating distinct modes of function-dependent regulation for each of these essential cell behaviors. Together, our results indicate that cardiac function modulates OFT morphogenesis by triggering endocardial cell accumulation that induces OFT lumen expansion and shapes OFT dimensions. Moreover, these morphogenetic mechanisms provide new perspectives regarding the potential causes of cardiac birth defects.

Identification of active components in Yixinshu Capsule with protective effects against myocardial dysfunction on human induced pluripotent stem cell-derived cardiomyocytes by an integrative approach.

Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) preparations have significant effects on some refractory diseases; however, these compositions are complex and their mechanisms are unknown. Identification of the active components in these preparations is essential. The mortality rate for heart failure (HF) has been increasing in recent years, and myocardial dysfunction (MD) has been proved to be the pathological basis of HF. Yixinshu Capsule (YXSC) is a multi-component oral drug with therapeutic effects on HF. However, the key active components are still unclear. In this study, YXSC intestinal absorption liquid (IAL) was used and 62 compounds were identified by an analytical chemistry approach. Then, a compound - target - function network was established with a bioinformatics analysis tool. Finally, a cell model of MD on human-induced pluripotent stem cell-derived cardiomyocytes (hiPS-CMs) was used to verify the therapeutic effects of the active components of YXSC. Schisandrin A (Sch A) and schisandrin B (Sch B) were demonstrated to be the active components of YXSC by attenuating endothelin-1 (ET-1)-induced contraction dysfunction, brain natriuretic peptide (BNP) content elevation, and the morphological changes of hiPS-CMs. For the first time, our data illustrate the potent protective effects of Sch A and Sch B on ET-1-induced dysfunctional hiPS-CMs and revealed their effective targets and pathways. The integrative approach used in our study was applied to identify active components in TCM preparations and excavate the possible mechanisms.

Cilia Control Vascular Mural Cell Recruitment in Vertebrates.

Vascular mural cells (vMCs) are essential components of the vertebrate vascular system, controlling blood vessel maturation and homeostasis. Discrete molecular mechanisms have been associated with vMC development and differentiation. The function of hemodynamic forces in controlling vMC recruitment is unclear. Using transgenic lines marking developing vMCs in zebrafish embryos, we find that vMCs are recruited by arterial-fated vessels and that the process is flow dependent. We take advantage of tissue-specific CRISPR gene targeting to demonstrate that hemodynamic-dependent Notch activation and the ensuing arterial genetic program is driven by endothelial primary cilia. We also identify zebrafish foxc1b as a cilia-dependent Notch-specific target that is required within endothelial cells to drive vMC recruitment. In summary, we have identified a hemodynamic-dependent mechanism in the developing vasculature that controls vMC recruitment.

Crocin protects against doxorubicin-induced myocardial toxicity in rats through down-regulation of inflammatory and apoptic pathways.

AIM: The clinical application of the chemotherapeutic agent; Doxorubicin (DOX) is limited by its toxic effects on several body organs. The current study was conducted to evaluate the cardiao-protective effects of crocin, a predominant bioactive constituent of Saffron against DOX-induced myocardial toxicity. METHODS: Adult male Sprague Dawley rats received DOX (3.5 mg/kg twice weekly) for 3 weeks with and without daily crocin (10 and 20 mg/kg, orally) for 3 weeks. RESULTS: DOX injection significantly elevated serum levels of aspartate aminotransferase (AST), cardiac specific-creatine kinase (CK-MB), cardiac Troponin T and lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) with impaired electrocardiogram (ECG) profile, indicating DOX-induced myocardial toxicity. Moreover, cardiac specimen examination revealed myocardial inflammatory infiltration with multifocal areas of myocardial degeneration/necrosis. DOX injection significantly increased numbers of active anti-Cd 68 positivity stained cells and significantly-induced myocardial apoptosis. Finally, there was a significant increase in cardiac TNF-α, IL-1ß and caspase-3 expression associated with significant decrease in IL-10. Crocin treatment resulted in a significant dose dependent attenuation of DOX-induced myocardial toxicity. It improved ECG profile and restored normal cardiac architecture. Furthermore, crocin reduced oxidative stress, enhanced host anti-oxidant defenses and decreased apoptosis as well. Additionally, crocin restored the balance between pro-and anti-inflammatory cytokines. The improvement in biochemical parameters was accompanied by significant myocardial improvement as seen in histopathological specimen. CONCLUSION: Crocin has a cardioprotective effect against DOX-induced cardiomayopathy. Anti-inflammatory, antioxidant and antiapoptic properties of crocin are thought to be involved in the observed cardioprotective effect.

Deficiency of slow skeletal muscle troponin T causes atrophy of type I slow fibres and decreases tolerance to fatigue.

The total loss of slow skeletal muscle troponin T (ssTnT encoded by TNNT1 gene) due to a nonsense mutation in codon Glu(180) causes a lethal form of recessively inherited nemaline myopathy (Amish nemaline myopathy, ANM). To investigate the pathogenesis and muscle pathophysiology of ANM, we studied the phenotypes of partial and total loss of ssTnT in Tnnt1 gene targeted mice. An insertion of neomycin resistance cassette in intron 10 of Tnnt1 gene caused an approximately 60% decrease in ssTnT protein expression whereas cre-loxP-mediated deletion of exons 11-13 resulted in total loss of ssTnT, as seen in ANM muscles. In diaphragm and soleus muscles of the knockdown and knockout mouse models, we demonstrated that ssTnT deficiency resulted in significantly decreased levels of other slow fibre-specific myofilament proteins whereas fast fibre-specific myofilament proteins were increased correspondingly. Immunohistochemical studies revealed that ssTnT deficiency produced significantly smaller type I slow fibres and compensatory growth of type II fast fibres. Along with the slow fibre atrophy and the changes in myofilament protein isoform contents, ssTnT deficiency significantly reduced the tolerance to fatigue in soleus muscle. ssTnT-deficient soleus muscle also contains significant numbers of small-sized central nuclei type I fibres, indicating active regeneration. The data provide strong support for the essential role of ssTnT in skeletal muscle function and the causal effect of its loss in the pathology of ANM. This observation further supports the hypothesis that the function of slow fibres can be restored in ANM patients if a therapeutic supplement of ssTnT is achieved.

Huperzine A ameliorates damage induced by acute myocardial infarction in rats through antioxidant, anti-apoptotic and anti-inflammatory mechanisms.

Huperzine A (HupA), an alkaloid used in traditional Chinese medicine and isolated from Huperzia serrata, has been shown to possess diverse biological activities. The present study was undertaken to evaluate the cardioprotective potential of HupA in myocardial ischemic damage using a rat model of acute myocardial infarction. HupA significantly diminished the infarct size and inhibited the activities of myocardial enzymes, including creatine kinase (CK), the MB isoenzyme of creatine kinase (CK-MB), lactate dehydrogenase (LDH) and cardiac troponin T (cTnT). A significantly reduced activity of malondialdehyde (MDA) and elevated activities of superoxide dismutase (SOD), of the non-enzymatic scavenger enzyme, glutathione (GSH), as well as of glutathione peroxidase (GSH-PX) were found in the HupA-treated groups. Furthermore, decreased protein levels of caspase-3 and Bax, and increased levels of Bcl-2 were observed in the infarcted hearts of the rats treated with various concentrations of HupA. In addition, treatment with HupA markedly inhibited the expression of the nuclear factor-κB (NF-κB) subunit p65, tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) and interleukin-1ß (IL-1ß). These findings suggest that the cardioprotective potential of HupA is associated with its antioxidant, anti-apoptotic and anti-inflammatory properties in acute myocardial infarction in rats.

Deletion of a genomic segment containing the cardiac troponin I gene knocks down expression of the slow troponin T gene and impairs fatigue tolerance of diaphragm muscle.

The loss of slow skeletal muscle troponin T (TnT) results in a recessive nemaline myopathy in the Amish featured with lethal respiratory failure. The genes encoding slow TnT and cardiac troponin I (TnI) are closely linked. Ex vivo promoter analysis suggested that the 5'-enhancer region of the slow TnT gene overlaps with the structure of the upstream cardiac TnI gene. Using transgenic expression of exogenous cardiac TnI to rescue the postnatal lethality of a mouse line in which the entire cardiac TnI gene was deleted, we investigated the effect of enhancer deletion on slow TnT gene expression in vivo and functional consequences. The levels of slow TnT mRNA and protein were significantly reduced in the diaphragm muscle of adult double transgenic mice. The slow TnT-deficient (ssTnT-KD) diaphragm muscle exhibited atrophy and decreased ratios of slow versus fast isoforms of TnT, TnI, and myosin. Consistent with the changes toward more fast myofilament contents, ssTnT-KD diaphragm muscle required stimulation at higher frequency for optimal tetanic force production. The ssTnT-KD diaphragm muscle also exhibited significantly reduced fatigue tolerance, showing faster and more declines of force with slower and less recovery from fatigue as compared with the wild type controls. The natural switch to more slow fiber contents during aging was partially blunted in the ssTnT-KD skeletal muscle. The data demonstrated a critical role of slow TnT in diaphragm function and in the pathogenesis and pathophysiology of Amish nemaline myopathy.

Ginsenoside Rb1 preconditioning protects against myocardial infarction after regional ischemia and reperfusion by activation of phosphatidylinositol-3-kinase signal transduction.

BACKGROUND: Ginsenoside Rb1, a major bioactive component of Panax ginseng, bears various beneficial effects on the cardiovascular system. This study investigated whether ginsenoside Rb1 preconditioning has protective effects on myocardial ischemia-reperfusion injury and its potential mechanism. METHODS: Rats subjected to 45 min of myocardial ischemia followed by 120 min of reperfusion were assigned to the following groups: sham-operated, ischemia-reperfusion (I/R), ginsenoside Rb1+I/R, wortmannin(a specific PI3K inhibitor)+I/R, wortmannin drug vehicle (dimethyl sulfoxide, DMSO), wortmannin+sham, ginsenoside Rb1+ wortmannin +I/R. Infarct size was assessed by triphenyltetrazolium chloride staining. Plasma creatine kinase (CK), creatine kinase isoenzyme MB (CK-MB), lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), and troponin T levels were also measured. Akt phosphorylation expression was assessed by immunoblotting. RESULTS: Ginsenoside Rb1 preconditioning reduced infarct size compared with that in the I/R group: 30 +/- 2.6% versus 51 +/- 2.7% (p < 0.01). Ginsenoside Rb1 preconditioning also markedly reduced the plasma CK, CK-MB, LDH and troponin T levels in blood. Akt phosphorylation expression increased after ginsenoside Rb1 preconditioning. These effects of ginsenoside Rb1 preconditioning were significantly inhibited by wortmannin. CONCLUSION: This is the first study to demonstrate that ginsenoside Rb1 preconditioning has protective effects on myocardial ischemia and reperfusion injury, partly by mediating the activation of the PI3K pathway and phosphorylation of Akt.

Selective activation of the prostanoid EP(3) receptor reduces myocardial infarct size in rodents.

The cardioprotective effects of E-type prostaglandins (EPs) have been attributed to vasodilatation, inhibition of platelet and neutrophil function (EP(2) mediated), and an unknown "cytoprotective effect." We have hypothesized that selective activation of EP(3) receptors may cause cardioprotection. The prostanoid derivative ONO-AE-248 selectively binds to murine EP(3alpha) receptors expressed in Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) cells (K(i), 15 nmol/L) and prevents the rise in cAMP caused by forskolin in CHO cells (IC(50) approximately 1 nmol/L) in which the EP(3alpha) receptor had been expressed. In anesthetized rats subjected to regional myocardial ischemia for 25 or 45 minutes and 2 hours of reperfusion, infusion of ONO-AE-248 (5 microg kg(-1). min(-1) IV) caused a significant reduction in infarct size, from 60+/-3% (n=8) to 36+/-6% (n=7) and from 78+/-2% (n=11) to 58+/-4% (n=9), respectively. The reduction in infarct size caused by ONO-AE-248 in rats subjected to 25 minutes of ischemia and reperfusion was abolished by a selective inhibitor of ATP-sensitive potassium (K(ATP)) channels, 5-hydroxydecanoate (n=6), and the protein kinase C inhibitors staurosporine (n=6) and chelerythrine (n=6). In anesthetized rabbits subjected to coronary artery occlusion for 45 or 60 minutes and 2 hours of reperfusion, infusion of ONO-AE-248 (5 microg. kg(-1). min(-1) IV) caused a significant reduction in infarct size, from 61+/-2% (n=10) to 36+/-4% (n=8) and from 63+/-4% (n=7) to 42+/-4% (n=7), respectively. The reduction in infarct size caused by ONO-AE-248 in the rabbit was also abolished by 5-hydroxydecanoate. The cardioprotective effect of ONO-AE-248 in rats or rabbits was not associated with any hemodynamic effects. Selective activation of the prostanoid EP(3) receptor reduces myocardial infarct size in rodents by a mechanism(s) that may involve the activation of protein kinase C and the opening of K(ATP) channels.