Rationale:
Increased myocardial activity of Ca/calmodulin-dependent kinase II (CaMKII) leads to heart failure (HF) and arrhythmias. In Drosophila neurons, interaction of CaMKII with Ca/CaM-dependent serine protein kinase (CASK) has been shown to inhibit CaMKII activity, but the consequences of this regulation for HF and ventricular arrhythmias are unknown.
Objective:
We hypothesize that CASK associates with CaMKII in human and mouse hearts thereby limiting CaMKII activity, and that altering CASK expression in mice changes CaMKII activity accordingly, with functional consequences for contractile function and arrhythmias.
Methods and Results:
Immunoprecipitation revealed that CASK associates with CaMKII in human hearts. CASK expression is unaltered in HF but increased in patients with aortic stenosis. In mice, cardiomyocyte-specific knockout of CASK (CASK-KO) increased CaMKII auto-phosphorylation at the stimulatory T287 site, but reduced phosphorylation at the inhibitory T305/306 site. CASK-KO mice showed increased CaMKII-dependent sarcoplasmic reticulum (SR) Ca leak, reduced SR Ca-content, increased susceptibility to ventricular arrhythmias, greater loss of ejection fraction, and increased mortality after transverse aortic constriction. Intriguingly, stimulation of the cardiac glucagon-like peptide 1-receptor with exenatide increased CASK expression resulting in increased inhibitory CaMKII T305 phosphorylation, reduced CaMKII activity, and reduced SR Ca leak in WT but not CASK KO.
Conclusions:
CASK associates with CaMKII in the human heart. CASK-KO in mice increases CaMKII activity, leading to contractile dysfunction and arrhythmias. Increasing CASK expression reduces CaMKII activity, improves Ca handling and contractile function.
Heart failure (HF), with steadily increasing incidence rates and mortality in an ageing population, represents a major challenge. Evidence suggests that more than half of all patients with a diagnosis of HF suffer from HF with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF). Emerging novel biomarkers to improve and potentially guide the treatment of HFpEF are the subject of discussion. One of these biomarkers is suppression of tumourigenicity 2 (ST2), a member of the interleukin (IL)-1 receptor family, binding to IL-33. Its two main isoforms – soluble ST2 (sST2) and transmembrane ST2 (ST2L) – show opposite effects in cardiovascular diseases. While the ST2L/IL-33 interaction is considered as being cardioprotective, sST2 antagonises this beneficial effect by competing for binding to IL-33. Recent studies show that elevated levels of sST2 are associated with increased mortality in HF with reduced ejection fraction. Nevertheless, the significance of sST2 in HFpEF remains uncertain. This article aims to give an overview of the current evidence on sST2 in HFpEF with an emphasis on prognostic value, clinical association and interaction with HF treatment. The authors conclude that sST2 is a promising biomarker in HFpEF. However, further research is needed to fully understand underlying mechanisms and ultimately assess its full value.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.