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Adverse remodeling after myocardial infarction (MI) result in heart failure and sudden cardiac death. Fibulin7 (FBLN7) is an adhesion protein excreted into the extracellular matrix that functions in multiple biological processes. However, whether and how FBLN7 affects post-MI cardiac remodeling remains unclear. Here, the authors identify FBLN7 as a critical profibrotic regulator of adverse cardiac remodeling. They observe significantly upregulated serum FBLN7 levels in MI patients with left ventricular remodeling compared to those without MI. Microarray dataset analysis reveal FBLN7 is upregulated in human heart samples from patients with dilated and hypertrophic cardiomyopathy compared with non-failing hearts. The authors demonstrate that FBLN7 deletion attenuated post-MI cardiac remodeling, leading to better cardiac function and reduced myocardial fibrosis, whereas overexpression of FBLN7 results in the opposite effects. Mechanistically, FBLN7 binds to the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) through its EGF-like domain, together with the EGF-like calcium-binding domain, and induces EGFR autophosphorylation at tyrosine (Y) 1068 and Y1173, which activates downstream focal adhesion kinase/AKT signaling, thereby leading to fibroblast-to-myofibroblast transdifferentiation. In addition, FBLN7-EGFR mediates this signal transduction, and the fibrotic response is effectively suppressed by the inhibition of EGFR activity. Taken together, FBLN7 plays an important role in cardiac remodeling and fibrosis after MI., (© 2023 The Authors. Advanced Science published by Wiley-VCH GmbH.)

Heart failure caused by pressure overload is one of the leading causes of heart failure worldwide, but its pathological origin remains poorly understood. It remains critical to discover and find new improvements and treatments for pressure overload-induced heart failure. According to previous studies, mitochondrial dysfunction and myocardial interstitial fibrosis are important mechanisms for the development of heart failure. The oligopeptide Szeto-Schiller Compound 31 (SS31) can specifically interact with the inner mitochondrial membrane and affect the integrity of the inner mitochondrial membrane. Whether SS31 alleviates pressure overload-induced heart failure through the regulation of mitochondrial fusion has not yet been confirmed. We established a pressure-overloaded heart failure mouse model through TAC surgery and found that SS31 can significantly improve cardiac function, reduce myocardial interstitial fibrosis, and increase the expression of optic atrophy-associated protein 1 (OPA1), a key protein in mitochondrial fusion. Interestingly, the role of SS31 in improving heart failure and reducing fibrosis is inseparable from the presence of sirtuin3 (Sirt3). We found that in Sirt3KO mice and fibroblasts, the effects of SS31 on improving heart failure and improving fibroblast transdifferentiation were disappeared. Likewise, Sirt3 has direct interactions with proteins critical for mitochondrial fission and fusion. We found that SS31 failed to increase OPA1 expression in both Sirt3KO mice and fibroblasts. Thus, SS31 can alleviate pressure overload-induced heart failure through Sirt3-mediated mitochondrial fusion. This study provides new directions and drug options for the clinical treatment of heart failure caused by pressure overload., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2022 Suo, Qi, Liu, Zhang, Li, Yan, Zhang, Ti, Chen and Bu.)

Intestinal flora plays an important role in atherosclerosis. Tongxinluo, as a multi-target Chinese medicine to improve atherosclerosis, whether it can improve atherosclerosis by affecting the intestinal flora is worth exploring. We established a vulnerable plaque model of atherosclerosis in New Zealand white rabbits by high cholesterol diet and balloon injury (HCB), and performed Tongxinluo intervention. We detected the level of inflammation by immunohistochemistry, Western Blot, and ELISA, analyzed plaque characteristics by calculating the vulnerability index, and analyzed the changes of gut microbiota and metabolites by 16S rRNA gene sequencing and untargeted metabolomic sequencing. The results showed that Tongxinluo intervention improved plaque stability, reduced inflammatory response, inhibited NLRP3 inflammatory pathway, increased the relative abundance of beneficial bacteria such as Alistipes which reduced by HCB, and increased the content of beneficial metabolites such as trans-ferulic acid in feces. Through correlation analysis, we found that some metabolites were significantly correlated with some bacteria and some inflammatory factors. In particular, the metabolite trans-ferulic acid was also significantly positively correlated with plaque stability. Our further studies showed that trans-ferulic acid could also inhibit the NLRP3 inflammatory pathway. In conclusion, Tongxinluo can improve plaque stability and reduce inflammation in atherosclerotic rabbits, which may be achieved by modulating intestinal flora and intestinal metabolism. Our study provides new views for the role of Tongxinluo in improving atherosclerotic vulnerable plaque, which has important clinical significance., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2022 Qi, Liu, Yan, Zhang, Zhang, Liu, Zheng, Suo, Ti, Ni, Zhang and Bu.)

Lymphangiogenesis is possibly capable of attenuating hypertension-induced cardiac injury. Sirtuin 3 (SIRT3) is an effective mitochondrial deacetylase that has the potential to modulate this process; however, its role in hypertension-induced cardiac lymphangiogenesis to date has not been investigated. Our experiments were performed on 8-week-old wild-type (WT), SIRT3 knockout (SIRT3-KO) and SIRT3 overexpression (SIRT3-LV) mice infused with angiotensin II (Ang II) (1000 ng/kg per minute) or saline for 28 days. After Ang II infusion, SIRT3-KO mice developed a more severe cardiac remodelling, less lymphatic capillaries and lower expression of lymphatic marker when compared to wild-type mice. In comparison, SIRT3-LV restored lymphangiogenesis and attenuated cardiac injury. Furthermore, lymphatic endothelial cells (LECs) exposed to Ang II in vitro exhibited decreased migration and proliferation. Silencing SIRT3 induced functional decrease in LECs, while SIRT3 overexpression LECs facilitated. Moreover, SIRT3 may up-regulate lymphangiogenesis by affecting vascular endothelial growth factor receptor 3 (VEGFR3) and ERK pathway. These findings suggest that SIRT3 could promote lymphangiogenesis and attenuate hypertensive cardiac injury., (© 2021 The Authors. Journal of Cellular and Molecular Medicine published by Foundation for Cellular and Molecular Medicine and John Wiley & Sons Ltd.)

Oxidative stress and apoptosis play a vital role in the pathogenesis of contrast-induced acute kidney injury (CI-AKI). The purpose of our study was to investigate the protective effects and mechanisms of melatonin against CI-AKI in a CI-AKI mouse model and NRK-52E cells. We established the CI-AKI model in mice, and the animals were pretreated with melatonin (20 mg/kg). Our results demonstrated that melatonin treatment exerted a renoprotective effect by decreasing the level of serum creatinine (SCr) and blood urea nitrogen (BUN), lessening the histological changes of renal tubular injuries, and reducing the expression of neutrophil gelatinase-associated lipid (NGAL), a marker of kidney injury. We also found that pretreatment with melatonin remarkably increased the expression of Sirt3 and decreased the ac-SOD2 K68 level. Consequently, melatonin treatment significantly decreased the oxidative stress by reducing the Nox4, ROS, and malondialdehyde (MDA) content and by increasing the superoxide dismutase (SOD) and glutathione peroxidase (GSH-Px) activity levels. The antiapoptotic effect of melatonin on CI-AKI was revealed by decreasing the ratio of Bax/Bcl2 and the cleaved caspase3 level and by reducing the number of apoptosis-positive tubular cells. In addition, melatonin treatment remarkably reduced the inflammatory cytokines of interleukin-1 β (IL-1 β ), tumor necrosis factor α (TNF α ), and transforming growth factor β (TGF β ) in vivo and in vitro. Sirt3 deletion and specific Sirt3 siRNA abolished the above renoprotective effects of melatonin in mice with iohexol-induced acute kidney injury and in NRK-52E cells. Thus, our results demonstrated that melatonin exhibited the renoprotective effects of antioxidative stress, antiapoptosis, and anti-inflammation by the activation of Sirt3 in the CI-AKI model in vivo and in vitro. Melatonin may be a potential drug to ameliorate CI-AKI in clinical practice., Competing Interests: All authors declare that no conflicts of interest exist., (Copyright © 2021 Chunmei Zhang et al.)

This study investigates the role of ranolazine in contrast-associated acute kidney injury (CA-AKI) and potential mechanisms. For in vivo studies, mouse models of CA-AKI and control mice were treated with ranolazine or vehicle. Blood urea nitrogen (BUN) and serum creatinine were detected by spectrophotometry. Anti-T-cell immunoglobulin and mucin domain 1 (TIM 1) and anti-lipocalin 2 antibody (LCN2) were detected by immunofluorescence. Hemodynamic parameters were detected via invasive blood pressure measurement and renal artery color doppler ultrasound, capillary density was measured by CD31 immunofluorescence, vascular permeability assay was performed by Evans blue dye. The expressions of oxidative stress and apoptotic markers were measured and analyzed by immunofluorescence and western blotting. For in vitro studies, intracellular calcium concentration of HUVECs was measured with Fluo 3-AM under confocal microscopy. Results show that compared with control mice, serum BUN, creatinine, TIM 1 and LCN2 levels were elevated in CA-AKI mice, but this effect was alleviated by ranolazine-pretreatment. Safe doses of ranolazine (less than 64 mg/kg) had no significant effect on overall blood pressure, but substantially improved renal perfusion, reduced contrast-induced microcirculation disturbance, improved renal capillary density and attenuated renal vascular permeability in ranolazine-pretreated CA-AKI mice. Mechanistically, ranolazine markedly down-regulated oxidative stress and apoptosis markers compared to CA-AKI mice. Intracellularly, ranolazine attenuated calcium overload in HUVECs. These results indicate that ranolazine alleviates CA-AKI through modulation of calcium independent oxidative stress and apoptosis., (Copyright © 2020 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Groundwork on cyanobacterial external layers is crucial for an improved understanding of the persistent dominance of cyanobacteria in freshwaters. In this study, the role of two morphotypes of external layers in Microcystis and Nostoc in mass transfer and instantaneous temperature shock were explored by noninvasive microtest technology (NMT) after a series of pretreatments, to obtain the external layers retained or stripped samples. The results showed no statistical influence on photosynthetic activity between retained and stripped samples in both Microcystis and Nostoc . External-layer-retaining strains had higher net O 2 effluxes than stripped strains. Moreover, the net NH 4 + influx was significantly higher for the sheath retaining Nostoc than for the stripped sample, indicating that external layers might be an important feature driving mass transfer in cyanobacteria. However, the role of slime in NH 4 + absorption was limited compared with that of sheath. In addition, external-layer-retaining strains exhibited a longer response time to instantaneous temperature shock, greater net O 2 effluxes at a 4 °C shock and lower net O 2 influx at a 35 °C shock, which were interpreted as reflecting a tolerance to temperature fluctuation over short time scales via a buffer function of external layers to stabilize cell activity, ameliorating the efficiency of photosynthesis and respiration. These results advance current knowledge regarding the external layers, especially the dense sheath, involved in the mass transfer in cyanobacteria, and provide new clues concerning the adaptive strategies of cyanobacteria under global climate changes.

Context: Sunitinib (SU) is a multi-targeted tyrosine kinase inhibitor anticancer agent whose clinical use is often limited by cardiovascular complications. Trimetazidine (TMZ) is an anti-angina agent that has been demonstrated cardioprotective effects in numerous cardiovascular conditions, but its potential effects in SU-induced cardiotoxicity have not been investigated. Objective: This study investigates the effect of TMZ in sunitinib-induced cardiotoxicity in vivo and in vitro and molecular mechanisms. Materials and methods: Male 129S1/SvImJ mice were treated with vehicle, SU (40 mg/kg/d) or SU and TMZ (20 mg/kg/d) via oral gavage for 28 days, and cardiovascular functions and cardiac protein expressions were examined. H9c2 cardiomyocytes were treated with vehicle, SU (2-10 μM) or SU and TMZ (40-120 μM) for 48 h, and cell viability, apoptosis, autophagy, and protein expression was tested. Results: SU induces hypertension (systolic blood pressure [SBP] + 28.33 ± 5.00 mmHg) and left ventricular dysfunction (left ventricular ejection fraction [LVEF] - 11.16 ± 2.53%) in mice. In H9c2 cardiomyocytes, SU reduces cell viability (IC 50 4.07 μM) and inhibits the AMPK/mTOR/autophagy pathway ( p  < 0.05). TMZ co-administration with SU reverses SU-induced cardiotoxicity in mice (SBP - 23.75 ± 4.69 mmHg, LVEF + 10.95 ± 3.317%), alleviates cell viability loss in H9c2 cardiomyocytes ( p  < 0.01) and activates the AMPK/mTOR/autophagy pathway in vivo ( p  < 0.001) and in vitro ( p  < 0.05). Discussion and conclusions: Our results suggest TMZ as a potential cardioprotective approach for cardiovascular complications during SU regimen, and potentially for cardiotoxicity of other anticancer chemotherapies associated with cardiomyocyte autophagic pathways.

Sunitinib malate is a multi-targeted tyrosine kinase inhibitor used extensively for treatment of human tumors. However, cardiovascular adverse effects of sunitinib limit its clinical use. It is pivotal to elucidate molecular targets that mediate sunitinib-induced cardiotoxicity. Sirtuin 3 (Sirt3) is an effective mitochondrial deacetylase that has been reported to regulate sensitivity of different types of cells to chemotherapies, but roles of Sirt3 in sunitinib-induced cardiotoxicity have not been investigated. In the present study, we established wild type, Sirt3-knockout, and Sirt3-overexpressing mouse models of sunitinib (40 mg kg -1  day -1 for 28 days)-induced cardiotoxicity and examined cardiovascular functions and pathological changes. We further cultured wild type, Sirt3-knockout, and Sirt3-overexpressing primary mouse cardiac pericytes and analyzed sunitinib (10 μMol for 48 h)-induced alterations in cellular viability, cell death processes, and molecular pathways. Our results show that sunitinib predominantly induced hypertension, left ventricular systolic dysfunction, and cardiac pericyte death accompanied with upregulation of Sirt3 in cardiac pericytes, and these cardiotoxicities were significantly attenuated in Sirt3-knockout mice, but aggravated in Sirt3-overexpressing mice. Mechanistically, sunitinib induced cardiac pericyte death through inhibition of GSTP1/JNK/autophagy pathway and Sirt3 interacted with and inhibited GSTP1, further inhibiting the pathway and aggravating sunitinib-induced pericyte death. Conclusively, we demonstrate that Sirt3 promotes sensitivity to sunitinib-induced cardiotoxicity via GSTP1/JNK/autophagy pathway. Our results suggest Sirt3 might be a potential target for developing cardioprotective therapies for sunitinib-receiving patients.

Background and Objective: MicroRNA (miR)-499 rs3746444 polymorphisms may participate in the pathogenesis of autoimmune diseases, but the results remain conflicting. We further investigated this association using a meta-analysis., Methods: We conducted a retrieval of studies and obtained the eligible studies if they met inclusion criteria. Two researchers independently extracted the data from original articles. The genotype frequencies were analysed using Stata software., Results: We finally archived six eligible studies that included 1,118 cases and 1,673 controls. After pooling the data, the results indicated that homozygote TT had an overall association with autoimmune diseases (TC + CC vs. TT: odds ratio [OR] 1.31, 95% CI 1.11-1.55, p = 0.001). The allele C, genotype TC and CC, may be associated with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) risks in Mediterranean populations (C vs. T: OR 2. 00, 95% CI 1.37-2.91, p < 0.001; TC vs. CC + TT: OR 1.76, 95% CI 1.27-2.44; p = 0.001; CC vs. TC + TT: OR 2.31, 95% CI 1.24-4.27, p = 0.008; CC vs. TT: OR 2.92, 95% CI 1.59-5.37, p = 0.001; TC vs. TT: OR 1.98, 95% CI 1.42-2.77). The genotype TT may decrease the risk of RA in Mediterranean populations (TC + CC vs. TT: OR 2.15, 95% CI 1.57-2.94, p < 0.001) rather than in East Asians., Conclusions: This study suggested that miR-499 polymorphisms were associated with a significantly increased risk of RA in Mediterranean populations.