IK1 Channel Agonist Zacopride Alleviates Cardiac Hypertrophy and Failure via Alterations in Calcium Dyshomeostasis and Electrical Remodeling in Rats

Abstract

Intracellular Ca 2+ overload, prolongation of the action potential duration (APD), and downregulation of inward rectifier potassium (I K1 ) channel are hallmarks of electrical remodeling in cardiac hypertrophy and heart failure (HF). We hypothesized that enhancement of I K1 currents is a compensation for I K1 deficit and a novel modulation for cardiac Ca 2+ homeostasis and pathological remodeling. In adult Sprague-Dawley (SD) rats in vivo , cardiac hypertrophy was induced by isoproterenol (Iso) injection (i.p., 3 mg/kg/d) for 3, 10, and 30 days. Neonatal rat ventricular myocytes (NRVMs) were isolated from 1 to 3 days SD rat pups and treated with 1 μmol/L Iso for 24 h in vitro . The effects of zacopride, a selective I K1 /Kir2.1 channel agonist, on cardiac remodeling/hypertrophy were observed in the settings of 15 μg/kg in vivo and 1 μmol/L in vitro . After exposing to Iso for 3 days and 10 days, rat hearts showed distinct concentric hypertrophy and fibrosis and enhanced pumping function ( P < 0.01 or P < 0.05), then progressed to dilatation and dysfunction post 30 days. Compared with the age-matched control, cardiomyocytes exhibited higher cytosolic Ca 2+ ( P < 0.01 or P < 0.05) and lower SR Ca 2+ content ( P < 0.01 or P < 0.05) all through 3, 10, and 30 days of Iso infusion. The expressions of Kir2.1 and SERCA2 were downregulated, while p -CaMKII, p -RyR2, and cleaved caspase-3 were upregulated. Iso-induced electrophysiological abnormalities were also manifested with resting potential (RP) depolarization ( P < 0.01), APD prolongation ( P < 0.01) in adult cardiomyocytes, and calcium overload in cultured NRVMs ( P < 0.01). Zacopride treatment effectively retarded myocardial hypertrophy and fibrosis, preserved the expression of Kir2.1 and some key players in Ca 2+ homeostasis, normalized the RP ( P < 0.05), and abbreviated APD ( P < 0.01), thus lowered cytosolic [Ca 2 + ] i ( P < 0.01 or P < 0.05). I K1 channel blocker BaCl 2 or chloroquine largely reversed the cardioprotection of zacopride. We conclude that cardiac electrical remodeling is concurrent with structural remodeling. By enhancing cardiac I K1 , zacopride prevents Iso-induced electrical remodeling around intracellular Ca 2+ overload, thereby attenuates cardiac structural disorder a...

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