No abstract

Glucagon-Like Peptide 1 (GLP-1) has insulin-like effects on myocardial glucose uptake which may contribute to its beneficial effects in the setting of myocardial ischemia. Whether these effects are different in the setting of obesity or type 2 diabetes (T2DM) requires investigation. We examined the cardiometabolic actions of GLP-1 (7–36) in lean and obese/T2DM humans, and in lean and obese Ossabaw swine. GLP-1 significantly augmented myocardial glucose uptake under resting conditions in lean humans, but this effect was impaired in T2DM. This observation was confirmed and extended in swine, where GLP-1 effects to augment myocardial glucose uptake during exercise were seen in lean but not in obese swine. GLP-1 did not increase myocardial oxygen consumption or blood flow in humans or in swine. Impaired myocardial responsiveness to GLP-1 in obesity was not associated with any apparent alterations in myocardial or coronary GLP1-R expression. No evidence for GLP-1 mediated activation of cAMP/PKA or AMPK signaling in lean or obese hearts was observed. GLP-1 treatment augmented p38-MAPK activity in lean, but not obese cardiac tissue. Taken together, these data provide novel evidence indicating that the cardiometabolic effects of GLP-1 are attenuated in obesity and T2DM, via mechanisms that may involve impaired p38-MAPK signaling.

Neurofibromatosis type 1 (NF1) is associated with vascular lesions, such as renal artery stenosis, and secondary hypertension. The real prevalence is largely unknown, particularly in children. We observed 27 patients with NF1, mean age 12.8 years (range 4.2-24 years), for 2-10 years to assess the association of NF1 with vascular abnormalities and secondary hypertension. Patients were studied with angiography, 24-h blood pressure monitoring, a captopril test, and Doppler ultrasonography of aorta and renal arteries. The prevalence of hypertension was 18.5%; 61.5% of patients studied with angiography had vascular lesions, half of whom were apparently normotensive. However, they had abnormal 24-h blood pressure monitoring, which was a first sign of poor blood pressure control. Those patients with severe hypertension (11.1%) were successfully treated with percutaneous transluminal angioplasty (PTA); stenosis recurred in 2 of 3 patients after a 2-year follow-up period, and was responsive to drugs. We conclude that hypertension is a frequent complication of NF1 in pediatric patients, it is usually secondary to typical vascular lesions, and requires careful follow-up. Ambulatory blood pressure monitoring (24-h) is a sensitive method for detecting initial alterations of the blood pressure pattern. PTA may be an effective treatment in this condition.

No abstract

This study examined the cardiovascular effects of GLP-1 (7–36) or (9–36) on myocardial oxygen consumption, function and systemic hemodynamics in vivo during normal perfusion and during acute, regional myocardial ischemia. Lean Ossabaw swine received systemic infusions of saline vehicle or GLP-1 (7–36 or 9–36) at 1.5, 3.0, and 10.0 pmol/kg/min in sequence for 30 min at each dose, followed by ligation of the left circumflex artery during continued infusion at 10.0 pmol/kg/min. Systemic GLP-1 (9–36) had no effect on coronary flow, blood pressure, heart rate or indices of cardiac function before or during regional myocardial ischemia. Systemic GLP-1 (7–36) exerted no cardiometabolic or hemodynamic effects prior to ischemia. During ischemia, GLP-1 (7–36) increased cardiac output by approximately 2 L/min relative to vehicle-controls (p=0.003). This response was not diminished by treatment with the non-depolarizing ganglionic blocker hexamethonium. Left ventricular pressure-volume loops measured during steady state conditions with graded occlusion of the inferior vena cava to assess load-independent contractility revealed that GLP-1 (7–36) produced marked increases in end diastolic volume (74 ± 1 to 92 ± 5 mL; p=0.03) and volume axis intercept (8 ± 2 to 26 ± 8; p=0.05), without any change in the slope of the end systolic pressure volume relationship vs. vehicle during regional ischemia. GLP-1 (9–36) produced no changes in any of these parameters compared to vehicle. These findings indicate that short-term systemic treatment with GLP-1 (7–36) but not GLP-1 (9–36) significantly augments cardiac output during regional myocardial ischemia, via increases in ventricular preload without changes in cardiac inotropy.

Goodwill AG, Fu L, Noblet JN, Casalini ED, Sassoon D, Berwick ZC, Kassab GS, Tune JD, Dick GM. K V7 channels contribute to paracrine, but not metabolic or ischemic, regulation of coronary vascular reactivity in swine. Am J Physiol Heart Circ Physiol 310: H693-H704, 2016. First published January 29, 2016 doi:10.1152 doi:10. /ajpheart.00688.2015 and voltage-dependent K ϩ (KV) channels play key roles in regulating coronary blood flow in response to metabolic, ischemic, and paracrine stimuli. The K V channels responsible have not been identified, but K V7 channels are possible candidates. Existing data regarding KV7 channel function in the coronary circulation (limited to ex vivo assessments) are mixed. Thus we examined the hypothesis that K V7 channels are present in cells of the coronary vascular wall and regulate vasodilation in swine. We performed a variety of molecular, biochemical, and functional (in vivo and ex vivo) studies. Coronary arteries expressed KCNQ genes (quantitative PCR) and K V7.4 protein (Western blot). Immunostaining demonstrated K V7.4 expression in conduit and resistance vessels, perhaps most prominently in the endothelial and adventitial layers. Flupirtine, a K V7 opener, relaxed coronary artery rings, and this was attenuated by linopirdine, a K V7 blocker. Endothelial denudation inhibited the flupirtine-induced and linopirdine-sensitive relaxation of coronary artery rings. Moreover, linopirdine diminished bradykinin-induced endothelial-dependent relaxation of coronary artery rings. There was no effect of intracoronary flupirtine or linopirdine on coronary blood flow at the resting heart rate in vivo. Linopirdine had no effect on coronary vasodilation in vivo elicited by ischemia, H 2O2, or tachycardia. However, bradykinin increased coronary blood flow in vivo, and this was attenuated by linopirdine. These data indicate that K V7 channels are expressed in some coronary cell type(s) and influence endothelial function. Other physiological functions of coronary vascular K V7 channels remain unclear, but they do appear to contribute to endothelium-dependent responses to paracrine stimuli. (3,14). Recent evidence suggests that myocardial production of hydrogen peroxide (H 2 O 2 ) may be a signal responsible for the near lockstep increases of coronary blood flow that accompany intensified metabolic demand (21,40,47). H 2 O 2 is generated in a variety of cellular processes and may be the primary transmitter of physiological redox signals (9, 45). For example, in coronary microvessels, H 2 O 2 is an endogenous hyperpolarizing factor released by mechanical and paracrine stimulation of the endothelium (31, 46). The specific redox-sensitive targets mediating H 2 O 2 -induced vasodilation of coronary vascular smooth have not been firmly established. Our previous findings suggest that voltage-dependent K ϩ (K V ) channels may play an important role, but the identities of individual K V channels involved remain elusive (4,5,12,38,39). K V 7 channels are expressed in a variety of vascular smooth muscle ...

A 9-year-old boy with hypertension was found to have neurofibromatosis associated with stenosis of the right renal artery. Percutaneous transluminal angioplasty (PTA) was performed. Immediately post angioplasty angiography showed that the stenosis persisted, but over the next few days his blood pressure rapidly decreased and remained well controlled even when treatment was discontinued. The captopril stimulation test, performed after PTA, confirmed the return of plasma renin activity to normal values. A digital subtraction aortogram, performed 2.5 years after PTA, was unchanged. His blood pressure remained persistently normal, without anti-hypertensive agents. Based on these results, PTA is suggested as the first step in correcting renal artery stenosis due to neurofibromatosis. A complete anatomical resolution of the stenosis is probably not required since slight improvements in the renal artery lumen may be accompanied by important functional improvement.

This study examined the mechanisms by which H2S modulates coronary microvascular resistance and myocardial perfusion at rest and in response to cardiac ischemia. Experiments were conducted in isolated coronary arteries and in open-chest anesthetized dogs. We found that the H2S substrate L-cysteine (1-10 mM) did not alter coronary tone of isolated arteries in vitro or coronary blood flow in vivo. In contrast, intracoronary (ic) H2S (0.1-3 mM) increased coronary flow from 0.49 ± 0.08 to 2.65 ± 0.13 ml/min/g (P□0.001). This increase in flow was unaffected by inhibition of Kv channels with 4-aminopyridine (P=0.127) but was attenuated (0.23 ± 0.02 to 1.13 ± 0.13 ml/min/g) by the KATP channel antagonist glibenclamide (P□0.001). Inhibition of NO synthesis (L-NAME) did not attenuate coronary responses to H2S. Immunohistochemistry revealed expression of cystathionine gamma-lyase (CSE), an endogenous H2S enzyme, in myocardium. Inhibition of CSE with β-cyano-L-alanine (10 µM) had no effect on baseline coronary flow or responses to a 15 sec coronary occlusion (P=0.82). These findings demonstrate that exogenous H2S induces potent, endothelial-independent dilation of the coronary microcirculation predominantly through the activation of KATP channels, however, our data do not support a functional role for endogenous H2S in the regulation of coronary microvascular resistance.