Circulation Research is a forum for fundamental, mechanistic research of relevance to the cardiovascular system from various disciplines including biochemistry, biophysics, cellular biology, molecular biology, genetics, pathology, physiology, and pharmacology. The journal publishes manuscripts of the highest quality pertaining to basic cardiac and vascular biology and encourages the submission of work that uses state-of-the-art approaches to illuminate mechanisms of human disease. A special welcome is extended to translational research and to clinical research that yields fundamental insights; studies in humans or human tissues that advance our understanding of the basis of disease and the mechanism of therapies are an area of particular emphasis.
Jing Huang, Zhiping Zhang, Jian Guo, Aiguo Ni, Arjun Deb, Lunan Zhang, Maria Mirotsou, Richard E. Pratt, Victor J. Dzau
Rationale
:
Although mesenchymal stem cell (MSC) transplantation has been shown to promote cardiac repair in acute myocardial injury in vivo, its overall restorative capacity appears to be restricted mainly because of poor cell viability and low engraftment in the ischemic myocardium. Specific chemokines are upregulated in the infarcted myocardium. However the expression levels of the corresponding chemokine receptors (eg, CCR1, CXCR2) in MSCs are very low. We hypothesized that this discordance may account for the poor MSC engraftment and survival.
Objective
:
To determine whether overexpression of CCR1 or CXCR2 chemokine receptors in MSCs augments their cell survival, migration and engraftment after injection in the infarcted myocardium.
Methods and Results
:
Overexpression of CCR1, but not CXCR2, dramatically increased chemokine-induced murine MSC migration and protected MSC from apoptosis in vitro. Moreover, when MSCs were injected intramyocardially one hour after coronary artery ligation, CCR1-MSCs accumulated in the infarcted myocardium at significantly higher levels than control-MSCs or CXCR2-MSCs 3 days postmyocardial infarction (MI). CCR1-MSC–injected hearts exhibited a significant reduction in infarct size, reduced cardiomyocytes apoptosis and increased capillary density in injured myocardium 3 days after MI. Furthermore, intramyocardial injection of CCR1-MSCs prevented cardiac remodeling and restored cardiac function 4 weeks after MI.
Conclusions
:
Our results demonstrate the in vitro and in vivo salutary effects of genetic modification of stem cells. Specifically, overexpression of chemokine receptor enhances the migration, survival and engraftment of MSCs, and may provide a new therapeutic strategy for the injured myocardium.
Jieli Chen, Zheng Gang Zhang, Yi Li, Lei Wang, Yong Xu, Subhash C. Gautam, Mei Lü, Zhenping Zhu, Michael Chopp
We tested the hypothesis that intravenous infusion of human bone marrow stromal cells (hMSCs) promotes vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) secretion, VEGF receptor 2 (VEGFR2) expression and angiogenesis in the ischemic boundary zone (IBZ) after stroke. hMSCs (1×10
6
) were intravenously injected into rats 24 hours after middle cerebral artery occlusion (MCAo). Laser scanning confocal microscopy (LSCM), immunohistochemistry and ELISA were performed to assay angiogenesis and levels of human and rat VEGF in the host brain, respectively. In addition, capillary-like tube formation was measured using mouse brain-derived endothelial cells (MBDECs). Morphological and three dimensional image analyses revealed significant (
P
<0.05) increases in numbers of enlarged and thin walled blood vessels and numbers of newly formed capillaries at the boundary of the ischemic lesion in rats (n=12) treated with hMSCs compared with numbers in rats (n=12) treated with PBS. ELISA measurements showed that treatment with hMSCs significantly (
P
<0.05) raised endogenous rat VEGF levels in the IBZ from 10.5±1.7 ng/mL in the control group to 17.5±1.6 ng/mL in the hMSC-treated group. In addition, treatment with hMSCs increased endogenous VEGFR2 immunoreactivity. In vitro, when MBDECs were incubated with the supernatant obtained from cultured hMSCs, capillary-like tube formation was significantly (
P
<0.01) induced. However, hMSC-induced capillary-like tube formation was significantly (
P
<0.01) inhibited when the endothelial cells were incubated with the supernatant from hMSCs in the presence of a neutralizing anti-VEGFR2. These data suggest that treatment of stroke with hMSCs enhances angiogenesis in the host brain and hMSC-enhanced angiogenesis is mediated by increases in levels of endogenous rat VEGF and VEGFR2.
Aging is a dominant risk factor for most forms of cardiovascular disease. Impaired angiogenesis and endothelial dysfunction likely contribute to the increased prevalence of both cardiovascular diseases and their adverse sequelae in the elderly. Angiogenesis is both an essential adaptive response to physiological stress and an endogenous repair mechanism after ischemic injury. In addition, induction of angiogenesis is a promising therapeutic approach for ischemic diseases. For these reasons, understanding the basis of age-related impairment of angiogenesis and endothelial function has important implications for understanding and managing cardiovascular disease. In this review, we discuss the molecular mechanisms that contribute to impaired angiogenesis in the elderly and potential therapeutic approaches to improving vascular function and angiogenesis in aging patients.
Abstract
—How a cell responds to stress is a central problem in cardiovascular biology. Diverse physiological stresses (eg, heat, hemodynamics, mutant proteins, and oxidative injury) produce multiple changes in a cell that ultimately affect protein structures and function. Cells from different phyla initiate a cascade of events that engage essential proteins, the molecular chaperones, in decisions to repair or degrade damaged proteins as a defense strategy to ensure survival. Accumulative evidence indicates that molecular chaperones such as the heat shock family of stress proteins (HSPs) actively participate in an array of cellular processes, including cytoprotection. The versatility of the ubiquitous HSP family is further enhanced by stress-inducible regulatory networks, both at the transcriptional and posttranscriptional levels. In the present review, we discuss the regulation and function of HSP chaperones and their clinical significance in conditions such as cardiac hypertrophy, vascular wall injury, cardiac surgery, ischemic preconditioning, aging, and, conceivably, mutations in genes encoding contractile proteins and ion channels.
Cell therapy is a promising option for treating ischemic diseases and heart failure. Adult stem and progenitor cells from various sources have experimentally been shown to augment the functional recovery after ischemia, and clinical trials have confirmed that autologous cell therapy using bone marrow—derived or circulating blood–derived progenitor cells is safe and provides beneficial effects. However, aging and risk factors for coronary artery disease affect the functional activity of the endogenous stem/progenitor cell pools, thereby at least partially limiting the therapeutic potential of the applied cells. In addition, age and disease affect the tissue environment, in which the cells are infused or injected. The present review article will summarize current evidence for cell impairment during aging and disease but also discuss novel approaches how to reverse the dysfunction of cells or to refresh the target tissue. Pretreatment of cells or the target tissue by small molecules, polymers, growth factors, or a combination thereof may provide useful approaches for enhancement of cell therapy for cardiovascular diseases.
Felix Fleißner, Virginija Jazbutyte, Jan Fiedler, Shashi Kumar Gupta, Xiaoke Yin, Qingbo Xu, Paolo Galuppo, Susanne Kneitz, Manuel Mayr, Georg Ertl, Johann Bauersachs, Thomas Thum
Rationale
:
The endogenous nitric oxide synthase inhibitor asymmetrical dimethylarginine (ADMA) is increased in patients with coronary artery disease and may regulate function of circulating angiogenic progenitor cells (APCs) by small regulatory RNAs.
Objectives
:
To study the role of microRNAs in ADMA-mediated impairment of APCs.
Methods and Results
:
By using microarray analyses, we established microRNA expression profiles of human APCs. We used ADMA to induce APC dysfunction and found 16 deregulated microRNAs. We focused on
miR-21
, which was 3-fold upregulated by ADMA treatment. Overexpression of
miR-21
in human APCs impaired migratory capacity. To identify regulated
miR-21
targets, we used proteome analysis, using difference in-gel electrophoresis followed by mass spectrometric analysis of regulated proteins. We found that transfection of
miR-21
precursors significantly repressed superoxide dismutase 2 in APCs, which resulted in increased intracellular reactive oxygen species concentration and impaired nitric oxide bioavailability.
MiR-21
further repressed sprouty-2, leading to Erk Map kinase–dependent reactive oxygen species formation and APC migratory defects. Small interference RNA–mediated superoxide dismutase 2 or sprouty-2 reduction also increased reactive oxygen species formation and impaired APC migratory capacity. ADMA-mediated reactive oxygen species formation and APC dysfunction was rescued by
miR-21
blockade. APCs from patients with coronary artery disease and high ADMA plasma levels displayed >4-fold elevated
miR-21
levels, low superoxide dismutase 2 expression, and impaired migratory capacity, which could be normalized by
miR-21
antagonism.
Conclusions
:
We identified a novel
miR-21
–dependent mechanism of ADMA-mediated APC dysfunction.
MiR-21
antagonism therefore emerges as an interesting strategy to improve dysfunctional APCs in patients with coronary artery disease.
Jes-Niels Boeckel, Nicolas Jaé, Andreas W. Heumüller, Wei Chen, Reinier A. Boon, Konstantinos Stellos, Andreas M. Zeiher, David John, Shizuka Uchida, Stefanie Dimmeler
Rationale:Circular RNAs (circRNAs) are noncoding RNAs generated by back splicing. Back splicing has been considered a rare event, but recent studies suggest that circRNAs are widely expressed. However, the expression, regulation, and function of circRNAs in vascular cells is still unknown.Objective:Here, we characterize the expression, regulation, and function of circRNAs in endothelial cells.Methods and Results:Endothelial circRNAs were identified by computational analysis of ribo-minus RNA generated from human umbilical venous endothelial cells cultured under normoxic or hypoxic conditions. Selected circRNAs were biochemically characterized, and we found that the majority of them lacks polyadenylation, is resistant to RNase R digestion and localized to the cytoplasm. We further validated the hypoxia-induced circRNAs cZNF292, cAFF1, and cDENND4C, as well as the downregulated cTHSD1 by reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction in cultured endothelial cells. Cloning of cZNF292 validated the predicted back splicing of exon 4 to a new alternative exon 1A. Silencing of cZNF292 inhibited cZNF292 expression and reduced tube formation and spheroid sprouting of endothelial cells in vitro. The expression of pre-mRNA or mRNA of the host gene was not affected by silencing of cZNF292. No validated microRNA-binding sites for cZNF292 were detected in Argonaute high-throughput sequencing of RNA isolated by cross-linking and immunoprecipitation data sets, suggesting that cZNF292 does not act as a microRNA sponge.Conclusions:We show that the majority of the selected endothelial circRNAs fulfill all criteria of bona fide circRNAs. The circRNA cZNF292 exhibits proangiogenic activities in vitro. These data suggest that endothelial circRNAs are regulated by hypoxia and have biological functions.
Epithelial to mesenchymal transition (EMT) converts epithelial cells to mobile and developmentally plastic mesenchymal cells. All cells in the heart arise from one or more EMTs. Endocardial and epicardial EMTs produce most of the noncardiomyocyte lineages of the mature heart. Endocardial EMT generates valve progenitor cells and is necessary for formation of the cardiac valves and for complete cardiac septation. Epicardial EMT is required for myocardial growth and coronary vessel formation, and it generates cardiac fibroblasts, vascular smooth muscle cells, a subset of coronary endothelial cells, and possibly a subset of cardiomyocytes. Emerging studies suggest that these developmental mechanisms are redeployed in adult heart valve disease, in cardiac fibrosis, and in myocardial responses to ischemic injury. Redirection and amplification of disease-related EMTs offer potential new therapeutic strategies and approaches for treatment of heart disease. Here, we review the role and molecular regulation of endocardial and epicardial EMT in fetal heart development, and we summarize key literature implicating reactivation of endocardial and epicardial EMT in adult heart disease.
Sven Reischauer, Rima Arnaout, Radhan Ramadass, Didier Y. R. Stainier
Rationale
:
Dilated cardiomyopathy is a leading cause of congestive heart failure and a debilitating complication of antineoplastic therapies. Despite disparate causes for dilated cardiomyopathy, maladaptive cardiac remodeling and decreased systolic function are common clinical consequences, begging an investigation of in vivo contractile dynamics in development and disease, one that has been impossible to date.Objective
:
To image myocardial contractile filament dynamics in vivo and to assess potential causes of dilated cardiomyopathy in antineoplastic therapies targeting the epidermal growth factor receptor Erbb2.Methods and Results
:
We generated a transgenic zebrafish line expressing an actin-binding green fluorescent protein in cardiomyocytes, allowing an in vivo imaging of myofilaments. Analysis of this line revealed architectural differences in myofibrils of the distinct cardiomyocyte subtypes. We used this model to investigate the effects of Erbb2 signaling on myofibrillar organization because drugs targeting ERBB2 (HER2/NEU) signaling, a mainstay of breast cancer chemotherapy, cause dilated cardiomyopathy in many patients. High-resolution in vivo imaging revealed that Erbb2 signaling regulates a switch between a dense apical network of filamentous myofibrils and the assembly of basally localized myofibrils in ventricular cardiomyocytes.Conclusions
:
Using this novel line, we compiled a reference for myofibrillar microarchitecture among myocardial subtypes in vivo and at different developmental stages, establishing this model as a tool to analyze in vivo cardiomyocyte contractility and remodeling for a broad range of cardiovascular questions. Furthermore, we applied this model to study Erbb2 signaling in cardiomyopathy. We show a direct link between Erbb2 activity and remodeling of myofibrils, revealing an unexpected mechanism with potentially important implications for prevention and treatment of cardiomyopathy.
The epicardium, the tissue layer covering the cardiac muscle (myocardium), develops from the proepicardium, a mass of coelomic progenitors located at the venous pole of the embryonic heart. Proepicardium cells attach to and spread over the myocardium to form the primitive epicardial epithelium. The epicardium subsequently undergoes an epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition to give rise to a population of epicardium-derived cells, which in turn invade the heart and progressively differentiate into various cell types, including cells of coronary blood vessels and cardiac interstitial cells. Epicardial cells and epicardium-derived cells signal to the adjacent cardiac muscle in a paracrine fashion, promoting its proliferation and expansion. Recently, high expectations have been raised about the epicardium as a candidate source of cells for the repair of the damaged heart. Because of its developmental importance and therapeutic potential, current research on this topic focuses on the complex signals that control epicardial biology. This review describes the signaling pathways involved in the different stages of epicardial development and discusses the potential of epicardial signals as targets for the development of therapies to repair the diseased heart.
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