This study characterizes a transgenic animal model for the troponin T (TnT) mutation (I79N) associated with familial hypertrophic cardiomyopathy. To study the functional consequences of this mutation, we examined a wild type and two I79N-transgenic mouse lines of human cardiac TnT driven by a murine ␣-myosin heavy chain promoter. Extensive characterization of the transgenic I79N lines compared with wild type and/or nontransgenic mice demonstrated: 1) normal survival and no cardiac hypertrophy even with chronic exercise; 2) large increases in Ca 2؉ sensitivity of ATPase activity and force in skinned fibers; 3) a substantial increase in the rate of force activation and an increase in the rate of force relaxation; 4) lower maximal force/cross-sectional area and ATPase activity; 5) loss of sensitivity to pHinduced shifts in the Ca 2؉ dependence of force; and 6) computer simulations that reproduced experimental observations and suggested that the I79N mutation decreases the apparent off rate of Ca 2؉ from troponin C and increases cross-bridge detachment rate g. Simulations for intact living fibers predict a higher basal contractility, a faster rate of force development, slower relaxation, and increased resting tension in transgenic I79N myocardium compared with transgenic wild type. These mechanisms may contribute to mortality in humans, especially in stimulated contractile states.

To unmask the role of triadin in skeletal muscle we engineered pan-triadin-null mice by removing the first exon of the triadin gene. This resulted in a total lack of triadin expression in both skeletal and cardiac muscle. Triadin knockout was not embryonic or birth-lethal, and null mice presented no obvious functional phenotype. Western blot analysis of sarcoplasmic reticulum (SR) proteins in skeletal muscle showed that the absence of triadin expression was associated with down-regulation of Junctophilin-1, junctin, and calsequestrin but resulted in no obvious contractile dysfunction. Ca 2؉ imaging studies in null lumbricalis muscles and myotubes showed that the lack of triadin did not prevent skeletal excitation-contraction coupling but reduced the amplitude of their Ca 2؉ transients. release mediated by these two channels (for review see Refs. 1-4). These proteins, including calsequestrin (Csq), calmodulin, triadin, junctin, Junctophilins 1 and 2, MG-29, FKBP12, and others yet to be discovered, along with the RyR and DHPR make up the so-called calcium release units (CRUs) (5).Triadins, a multimember family of proteins that are the product of alternative splicing from a single gene and expressed almost exclusively in striated muscle (3, 6), have generated significant attention in recent years for their involvement in a variety of cellular events in muscle cells, but their precise role in muscle function is mostly unknown. Triadin was first identified in skeletal muscle as a 94-to 95-kDa transmembrane protein (7,8) that is abundantly expressed on the junctional sarcoplasmic reticulum (jSR), were it colocalizes with RyR1 and DHPR (9).Early studies of binding assays of solubilized SR proteins showed that triadin could not only be coimmunoprecipitated with other triadic proteins (10) but also could associate into macromolecular complexes with both the DHPR and RyR1 (7,11,12). Based in this association triadin was proposed as the key molecular linker mediating the DHPR/RyR1 communication during muscle contraction. Although functional interactions between triadin and the DHPR in skeletal muscle have proven difficult to confirm, functional and structural interactions between triadin and RyR1 have been documented by several investigators. In vitro studies have shown that the SR luminal domain of triadin not only interacts with RyR1 but appears to anchor Csq to it, mediating the functional coupling between these two proteins via specific domains (13-17).Several studies have suggested a major role for triadin 95 in modulating RyR channel properties. Both an anti-triadin anti-* This work was supported by American Heart Association Grant 0530250N (to C. F. P.) and National Institute of Health Grant PO1AR47605 (to P. D. A.). The costs of publication of this article were defrayed in part by the payment of page charges. This article must therefore be hereby marked "advertisement" in accordance with 18 U.S.C. Section 1734 solely to indicate this fact. Together these studies suggest a negative regulatory role for triadin on RyR...

Familial hypertrophic cardiomyopathy has been associated with several mutations in the gene encoding human cardiac troponin I (HCTnI). A missense mutation in the inhibitory region of TnI replaces an arginine residue at position 145 with a glycine and cosegregates with the disease. Results from several assays indicate that the inhibitory function of HCTnI R145G is significantly reduced. When HCTnI R145G was incorporated into whole troponin, Tn R145G (HCTnT⅐HCTnI R145G ⅐HCTnC), only partial inhibition of the actin-tropomyosin-myosin ATPase activity was observed in the absence of Ca 2؉ compared with wild type Tn (HCTnT⅐HCTnI⅐HCTnC). Maximal activation of actin-tropomyosin-myosin ATPase in the presence of Ca 2؉ was also decreased in Tn R145G when compared with Tn. Using skinned cardiac muscle fibers, we determined that in comparison with the wild type complex 1) the complex containing HCTnI R145G only inhibited 84% of Ca 2؉ -unregulated force, 2) the recovery of Ca 2؉ -activated force was decreased, and 3) there was a significant increase in the Ca 2؉ sensitivity of force development. Computer modeling of troponin C and I variables predicts that the primary defect in TnI caused by these mutations would lead to diastolic dysfunction. These results suggest that severe diastolic dysfunction and somewhat decreased contractility would be prominent clinical features and that hypertrophy could arise as a compensatory mechanism. Familial hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (FHC)1 has been linked to mutations in genes of nine different sarcomeric proteins. These mutations have been found in the genes for ␣-myosin heavy chain (1), cardiac myosin essential light chain and cardiac myosin regulatory light chain (2), ␣-tropomyosin, cardiac troponin T (TnT) (3), cardiac myosin-binding protein C (4, 5), troponin I (TnI) (6), ␣-actin (7), as well as titin (8), and possibly troponin C (TnC) (9). This disease has recently gained significant attention due to several highly publicized reports of sudden death and fainting spells in young athletes who were asymptomatic and otherwise healthy individuals. In general, patients with FHC demonstrate an increase in heart muscle mass and sometimes an irregular echocardiogram (10). Kimura et al. (6) reported five missense mutations in TnI, R145G, R145Q, R162W, G203S, and K206Q, that cosegregate with FHC (Fig. 1). Three other TnI FHC mutants (S199N, Lys-183 deletion, and an exon 8 deletion mutant encompassing the stop codon of the cardiac TnI gene) have recently been discovered (11, 12). Functionally TnI is the inhibitory subunit of the troponin (Tn) complex that controls the interaction between actin and myosin in a Ca 2ϩ -dependent manner (13-15). Studies using proteolytic fragments of fast skeletal TnI identified the central TnI sequence (residues 96 -116) as being responsible for its inhibitory activity. Residues 104 -115 of fast skeletal TnI (comparable to residues 136 -147 in cardiac TnI) formed the minimum sequence necessary for inhibition of muscle contraction (16 -19). Two of these mutations occ...

The cardiac troponin T (TnT) I79N mutation has been linked to familial hypertrophic cardiomyopathy and a high incidence of sudden death, despite causing little or no cardiac hypertrophy. In skinned fibers, I79N increased myofilamental calcium sensitivity (Miller, T., Szczesna, D., Housmans, P. R., Zhao, J., deFreitas, F., Gomes, A. V., Culbreath, L., McCue concentration of the perfusate; systolic function was significantly increased in Tg-I79N hearts at 0.5 and 1 mmol/liter. At higher Ca 2؉ concentrations, systolic function was not different, but diastolic dysfunction became manifest as increased end-diastolic pressure and time to 90% relaxation. In vivo measurements by echocardiography and Doppler confirmed that base-line systolic function was significantly higher in Tg-I79N mice without evidence for diastolic dysfunction. Inotropic stimulation with isoproterenol resulted only in a modest contractile response but caused significant mortality in Tg-I79N mice. Doppler studies ruled out aortic outflow obstruction and were consistent with increased chamber stiffness. We conclude that in vivo, the increased myofilament Ca 2؉ sensitivity due to the I79N mutation enhances base-line contractility but leads to cardiac dysfunction during inotropic stimulation. Mutations in cardiac troponin T (TnT)1 have been implicated in familial hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (FHC) (1-5). Individuals with cardiac TnT mutations appear to have a high incidence of sudden cardiac death at a young age, although heterozygote individuals have either little or no cardiac hypertrophy (1, 3, 4). At present, there is no clear understanding as to why TnT mutations in particular pose a high risk for sudden death, as opposed to, for example, mutations in the myosin heavy chain, which usually cause a much greater degree of cardiac hypertrophy. Sudden cardiac death of FHC patients is often caused by ventricular tachyarrhythmias (6), but its cause remains unknown for patients with TnT mutations. In fact, the clinical features of hypertrophic cardiomyopathy have been established mostly without knowledge of the genotype and may not apply to patients carrying specific TnT mutations. Given the paucity of clinical information, a transgenic mouse model provides the opportunity to study the functional consequences of a TnT mutation in an in vivo system.To investigate the mechanisms of how a TnT mutation alters cardiac function and lead to sudden cardiac death, we have generated transgenic mice expressing the human cardiac TnT-I79N mutant (Tg-I79N). Similar to humans carrying this mutation, Tg-I79N mice show no cardiac hypertrophy (7). We found a large increase in Ca 2ϩ sensitivity of the skinned cardiac fibers from Tg-I79N mice compared with fibers from transgenic mice expressing human wild-type TnT (Tg-WT), but maximal developed force was significantly lower in cardiac fibers from Tg-I79N mice (7).In this study, we examined the effect of the I79N mutation on cardiac performance and electrophysiological properties of the whole heart, in vitro and in vivo. We fou...

In order to study the role of the Ca2+-specific sites (I and II) and the high affinity Ca2+-Mg2+ sites (III and IV) of TnC in the regulation of muscle contraction, we have constructed four mutants and the wild type (WTnC) of chicken skeletal TnC, with inactivated Ca2+ binding sites I and II (TnC1,2-), site III (TnC3-), site IV (TnC4-), and sites III and IV (TnC3,4C-). All Ca2+ binding site mutations were generated by replacing the Asp at the X-coordinating position of the Ca2+ binding loop with Ala. The binding of these mutated proteins to TnC-depleted skinned skeletal muscle fibers was investigated as well as the rate of their dissociation from these fibers. The proteins were also tested for their ability to restore steady state force to TnC-depleted fibers. We found that although the NH2-terminal mutant of TnC (TnC1,2-) bound to the TnC-depleted fibers (with a lower affinity than wild type TnC (WTnC)), it was unable to reactivate Ca2+-dependent force. This supports earlier findings that the low affinity Ca2+ binding sites (I and II) in TnC are responsible for the Ca2+-dependent activation of skeletal muscle contraction. All three COOH-terminal mutants of TnC bound to the TnC-depleted fibers, had different rates of dissociation, and could restore steady state force to the level of unextracted fibers. Although both high affinity Ca2+ binding sites (III and IV) are important for binding to the fibers, site III appears to be the primary determinant for maintaining the structural stability of TnC in the thin filament. Moreover, our results suggest an interaction between the NH2- and COOH-terminal domains of TnC, since alteration of sites I and II lowers the binding affinity of TnC to the fibers, and mutations in sites III and IV affect the Ca2+ sensitivity of force development.

We have studied the physiological effects of the troponin T (TnT) F110I and R278C mutations associated with familial hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (FHC) in humans. Three to four-month-old transgenic (Tg) mice expressing F110I-TnT and R278C-TnT did not develop significant hypertrophy or ventricular fibrosis even after chronic exercise challenge. The F110I mutation impaired acute exercise tolerance, whereas R278C did not. Skinned papillary muscle fibers from transgenic mice expressing F110I-TnT demonstrated increased Ca 2؉ sensitivity of force and ATPase activity, and likewise an increased Ca 2؉ sensitivity of force was observed in F110I-TnT-reconstituted human cardiac muscle preparations. In contrast, no changes in force or the ATPase-pCa dependencies were observed in transgenic R278C fibers or in human fibers reconstituted with the R278C-TnT mutant. The maximal level of force development was dramatically decreased in both transgenic mice. However, the maximal ATPase was not different (R278C-TnT) or only slightly less (F110I-TnT) than that of non-Tg and WT-Tg littermates. Consequently, their ratios of ATPase/force (energy cost) at all Ca 2؉ concentrations were dramatically higher compared with non-Tg and WT-Tg fibers. This increase in energy cost most likely results from a decrease in force per myosin cross-bridge, because forcing all cross-bridges into the force generating state by substitution of MgADP for MgATP in maximum contracting solutions resulted in the same increase in maximal force (15%) in all transgenic and non-transgenic preparations. The combination of increased Ca 2؉ sensitivity and energy cost in the F110I hearts may be responsible for the greater severity of this phenotype compared with the R278C mutation.

Background-The importance of germ-line mosaicism in genetic disease is probably underestimated, even though recent studies indicate that it may be involved in 10% to 20% of apparently de novo cases of several dominantly inherited genetic diseases. Methods and Results-We describe here a case of repeated germ-line transmission of a severe form of long-QT syndrome (LQTS) from an asymptomatic mother with mosaicism for a mutation in the cardiac sodium channel, SCN5A. A male infant was diagnosed with ventricular arrhythmias and cardiac decompensation in utero at 28 weeks and with LQTS after birth, ultimately requiring cardiac transplantation for control of ventricular tachycardia. The mother had no ECG abnormalities, but her only previous pregnancy had ended in stillbirth with evidence of cardiac decompensation at 7 months' gestation. A third pregnancy also ended in stillbirth at 7 months, again with nonimmune fetal hydrops. The surviving infant was found to have a heterozygous mutation in SCN5A (R1623Q), previously reported as a de novo mutation causing neonatal ventricular arrhythmia and LQTS. Initial studies of the mother detected no genetic abnormality, but a sensitive restriction enzyme-based assay identified a small (8% to 10%) percentage of cells harboring the mutation in her blood, skin, and buccal mucosa. Cord blood from the third fetus also harbored the mutant allele, suggesting that all 3 cases of late-term fetal distress resulted from germ-line transfer of the LQTS-associated mutation. Conclusions-Recurrent late-term fetal loss or sudden infant death can result from unsuspected parental mosaicism for LQTS-associated mutations, with important implications for genetic counseling.

Fibronectin adsorbs to a variety of surfaces. Adsorption on different biomaterial substrates can result in different conformations for the adsorbed fibronectin. The adsorption isotherms of fibronectin to either neutral polystyrene or negatively charged polystyrene are indistinguishable. Sulfonation was used to vary the level of negative charge on polystyrene surfaces, and adhesion strength of HT1080 cells to these surfaces following fibronectin coating was measured using a spinning disk device. Adhesion to the different fibronectin surfaces was R5β1 integrin dependent, and charge variation had little effect on overall adhesion strength. Ligation of R5β1 integrin to surface-bound fibronectin resulted in a fibronectin-density-dependent increase in phosphorylation of FAK Y397 when negatively charged substrates were used but resulted in no FAK phosphorylation when uncharged substrates were used. Similarly, cell spreading was dependent on the level of negative charge. Thus, the use of specific biomaterial substrates can separate the adhesion and signaling functions of R5β1 integrin. Polylysine coating was used to analyze the effect of positive charge. On the polylysine substrate, there is an increase in the level of nonspecific adhesion following coating with fibronectin and/or bovine serum albumin (BSA). On BSA substrates, there was no stimulation of FAK Y397 phosphorylation. Addition of fibronectin to the polylysine surfaces produced a weak stimulation of FAK Y397 phosphorylation indicating that the positively charged surface was also unfavorable for supporting R5β1-mediated signals.