Urocortin-2 (UCn2) peptide infusion increases cardiac function in patients with heart failure, but chronic peptide infusion is cumbersome, costly, and provides only short-term benefits. Gene transfer would circumvent these shortcomings. Here we ask whether a single intravenous injection of adeno-associated virus type 8 encoding murine urocortin-2 (AAV8.UCn2) could provide long-term elevation in plasma UCn2 levels and increased left ventricular (LV) function. Normal mice received AAV8.UCn2 (5 · 10 11 genome copies, intravenous). Plasma UCn2 increased 15-fold 6 weeks and > 11-fold 7 months after delivery. AAV8 DNA and UCn2 mRNA expression was persistent in LV and liver up to 7 months after a single intravenous injection of AAV8.UCn2. Physiological studies conducted both in situ and ex vivo showed increases in LV + dP/dt and in LV -dP/dt, findings that endured unchanged for 7 months. SERCA2a mRNA and protein expression was increased in LV samples and Ca 2 + transient studies showed an increased rate of Ca 2 + decline in cardiac myocytes from mice that had received UCn2 gene transfer. We conclude that a single intravenous injection of AAV8.UCn2 increases plasma UCn2 and increases LV systolic and diastolic function for at least 7 months. The simplicity of intravenous injection of a long-term expression vector encoding a gene with paracrine activity to increase cardiac function is a potentially attractive strategy in clinical settings. Future studies will determine the usefulness of this approach in the treatment of heart failure.
Urocortin-2 (UCn2) peptide infusion increases cardiac function in patients with heart failure, but chronic peptide infusion is cumbersome, is costly, and provides only short-term benefits. Gene transfer would circumvent these shortcomings. We previously showed that a single intravenous (IV) injection of AAV8.UCn2 increases plasma UCn2 and left ventricular (LV) systolic and diastolic function for at least 7 months in normal mice. Here we test the hypothesis that IV delivery of AAV8.UCn2 increases function of the failing heart. Myocardial infarction (MI, by coronary ligation) was used to induce heart failure, which was assessed by echocardiography 3 weeks after MI. Mice with LV ejection fraction (EF) <25% received IV delivery of AAV8.UCn2 (5×1011 gc) or saline, and 5 weeks later echocardiography showed increased LV EF in mice that received UCn2 gene transfer (p=0.01). In vivo physiological studies showed a 2-fold increase in peak rate of LV pressure development (LV +dP/dt; p<0.0001) and a 1.6-fold increase in peak rate of LV pressure decay (LV −dP/dt; p=0.0007), indicating increased LV systolic and diastolic function in treated mice. UCn2 gene transfer was associated with increased peak systolic Ca2+ transient amplitude and rate of Ca2+ decline and increased SERCA2a expression. In addition, UCn2 gene transfer reduced Thr286 phosphorylation of Cam kinase II, and increased expression of cardiac myosin light chain kinase, findings that would be anticipated to increase function of the failing heart. We conclude that a single IV injection of AAV8.UCn2 increases function of the failing heart. The simplicity of IV injection of a vector encoding a gene with beneficial paracrine effects to increase cardiac function is an attractive potential clinical strategy.
Background The pathophysiology of increased severity of erectile dysfunction in men with diabetes and their poor response to oral pharmacotherapy are unclear. Defective vascular endothelium and consequent impairment in the formation and action of nitric oxide (NO) are implicated as potential mechanisms. Endothelial NO synthase, critical for NO generation, is localized to caveolae, plasma membrane lipid rafts enriched in structural proteins, and caveolins. Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM)-induced changes in caveolin expression are recognized to play a role in cardiovascular dysfunction. Aims To evaluate DM-related changes to male erectile tissue in a mouse model that closely resembles human T2DM and study the specific role of caveolins in penile blood flow and microvascular perfusion using mice lacking caveolin (Cav)-1 or Cav-3. Methods We used wild-type C57BL6 (control) and Cav-1 and Cav-3 knockout (KO) male mice. T2DM was induced by streptozotocin followed by a high-fat diet for 4 months. Penile expressions of Cav-1, Cav-3, and endothelial NO synthase were determined by western blot, and phosphodiesterase type 5 activity was measured using [3H] cyclic guanosine monophosphate as a substrate. For hemodynamic studies, Cav-1 and Cav-3 KO mice were anesthetized, and penile blood flow (peak systolic velocity and end-diastolic velocity; millimeters per second) was determined using a high-frequency and high-resolution digital imaging color Doppler system. Penile tissue microcirculatory blood perfusion (arbitrary perfusion units) was measured using a novel PeriCam PSI system. Outcomes Penile erectile tissues were harvested for histologic studies to assess Cav-1, Cav-3, and endothelial NO synthase expression, phosphodiesterase type 5 activity, and blood flow, and perfusion measurements were assessed for hemodynamic studies before and after an intracavernosal injection of prostaglandin E1 (50 ng). Results In T2DM mice, decreased Cav-1 and Cav-3 penile protein expression and increased phosphodiesterase type 5 activity were observed. Decreased response to prostaglandin E1 in peak systolic velocity (33 ± 4 mm/s in Cav-1 KO mice vs 62 ± 5 mm/s in control mice) and perfusion (146 ± 12 AU in Cav-1 KO mice vs 256 ± 12 AU in control mice) was observed. Hemodynamic changes in Cav-3 KO mice were insignificant. Clinical Translation Our findings provide novel mechanistic insights into erectile dysfunction severity and poor pharmacotherapy that could have potential application to patients with T2DM. Strengths and Limitations Use of KO mice and novel hemodynamic techniques are the strengths. A limitation is the lack of direct evaluation of penile hemodynamics in T2DM mice. Conclusion Altered penile Cav-1 expression in T2DM mice and impaired penile hemodynamics in Cav-1 KO mice suggests a regulatory role for Cav-1 in DM-related erectile dysfunction.
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.
hi@scite.ai
10624 S. Eastern Ave., Ste. A-614
Henderson, NV 89052, USA
Copyright © 2024 scite LLC. All rights reserved.
Made with 💙 for researchers
Part of the Research Solutions Family.