Depressed capillary density is associated with myocardial ischemic infarction, in which hypoxia-inducible factor 1α (HIF-1α) is increased. The present study was undertaken to examine changes in the angiogenic factors whose expression is regulated by HIF-1 and their relation to the depressed capillary density in the Rhesus monkey model of myocardial ischemic infarction. Male Rhesus monkeys 2-3 years old were subjected to myocardial ischemia by permanent ligation of left anterior descending (LAD) artery leading to the development of myocardial infarction. Eight weeks after LAD ligation, copper concentrations, myocardial histological changes and capillary density were examined, along with Western blot and immunohistochemical analysis of angiogenic factors and detection of HIF-1 activity. Capillary density was significantly decreased but the concentrations of HIF-1α and HIF-1β were significantly increased in the infarct area. However, the levels of mRNA and protein for VEGF and VEGFR1 were significantly decreased. Other HIF-1 regulated angiogenic factors, including Tie-2, Ang-1 and FGF-1, were also significantly depressed, but vascular destabilizing factor Ang-2 was significantly increased. Copper concentrations were depressed in the infarct area. Copper-independent HIF-1 activity was increased shown by the elevated mRNA level of IGF-2, a HIF-1 target gene. Removal of copper by a copper chelator, tetraethylenepentamine, from primary cultures of neonatal rat cardiomyocytes also suppressed the expression of HIF-1 regulated VEGF and BNIP3, but not IGF-2. The data suggest that under ischemic conditions, copper loss suppressed the expression of critical angiogenic genes regulated by HIF-1, but did not affect copper-independent HIF-1 activation of gene expression. This copper-dependent dysregulation of angiogenic gene expression would contribute to the pathogenesis of myocardial ischemic infarction.
The AKT (protein kinase B, PKB) family has been shown to participate in diverse cellular processes, including apoptosis. Previous studies demonstrated that protein kinase B2 (AKT2−/−) mice heart was sensitized to apoptosis in response to ischemic injury. However, little is known about the mechanism and apoptotic signaling pathway. Here, we show that AKT2 inhibition does not affect the development of cardiomyocytes but increases cell death during cardiomyocyte ischemia. Caspase-dependent apoptosis of both the extrinsic and intrinsic pathway was inactivated in cardiomyocytes with AKT2 inhibition during ischemia, while significant mitochondrial disruption was observed as well as intracytosolic translocation of cytochrome C (Cyto C) together with apoptosis-inducing factor (AIF) and endonuclease G (EndoG), both of which are proven to conduct DNA degradation in a range of cell death stimuli. Therefore, mitochondria-dependent cell death was investigated and the results suggested that AIF and EndoG nucleus translocation causes cardiomyocyte DNA degradation during ischemia when AKT2 is blocked. These data are the first to show a previous unrecognized function and mechanism of AKT2 in regulating cardiomyocyte survival during ischemia by inducing a unique mitochondrial-dependent DNA degradation pathway when it is inhibited.
AKT2 deficiency prevents the development of AngII/HSD-induced hypertension, cardiac dysfunction and myocardial injury including oxidative stress, fibrosis and inflammation by suppressing IL-6 expression. These data reveal an important role of the AKT2-IL-6 pathway in mediating AngII/HSD-induced hypertension and cardiomyopathy.
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