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Cadmium, a highly toxic environmental pollutant, is reported to induce toxicity and apoptosis in multiple organs and cells, all possibly contributing to apoptosis in certain pathophysiologic situations. Previous studies have described that cadmium toxicity induces biochemical and physiological changes in the heart and finally leads to cardiac dysfunctions, such as decreasing contractile tension, rate of tension development, heart rate, coronary flow rate and atrioventricular node conductivity. Although many progresses have been made, the mechanism responsible for cadmium-induced cellular alternations and cardiac toxicity is still not fully understood. In the present study, we demonstrated that cadmium toxicity induced dramatic endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress and impaired energy homoeostasis in cultured cardiomyocytes. Moreover, cadmium toxicity may inhibit protein kinase B (AKT)/mTOR (mammalian target of rapamycin) pathway to reduce energy productions, by either disrupting the glucose metabolism or inhibiting mitochondrial respiratory gene expressions. Our work will help to reveal a novel mechanism to clarify the role of cadmium toxicity to cardiomyocytes and provide new possibilities for the treatment of cardiovascular diseases related to cadmium toxicity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

GDF15 (growth/differentiation factor 15), a novel member of the TGFβ (transforming growth factor β) superfamily, plays critical roles in the central and peripheral nervous systems, but the signal transduction pathways and receptor subtypes involved are not well understood. In the present paper, we report that GDF15 specifically increases the IK (delayed-rectifier outward K+ current) in rat CGNs (cerebellar granule neurons) in time- and concentration-dependent manners. The GDF15- induced amplification of the IK is mediated by the increased expression and reduced lysosome-dependent degradation of the Kv2.1 protein, the main α-subunit of the IK channel. Exposure of CGNs to GDF15 markedly induced the phosphorylation of ERK (extracellular-signal-regulated kinase), Akt and mTOR (mammalian target of rapamycin), but the GDF15-induced IK densities and increased expression of Kv2.1 were attenuated only by Akt and mTOR, and not ERK, inhibitors. Pharmacological inhibition of the Src-mediated phosphorylation of TGFβR2 (TGFβ receptor 2), not TGFβR1, abrogated the effect of GDF15 on IK amplification and Kv2.1 induction. Immunoprecipitation assays showed that GDF15 increased the tyrosine phosphorylation of TGFβRII in the CGN lysate. The results of the present study reveal a novel regulation of Kv2.1 by GDF15 mediated through the TGFβRII-activated Akt/mTOR pathway, which is a previously uncharacterized Smad-independent mechanism of GDF15 signalling. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cadmium, a highly toxic environmental pollutant, is reported to induce toxicity and apoptosis in multiple organs and cells, all possibly contributing to apoptosis in certain pathophysiologic situations. Previous studies have described that cadmium toxicity induces biochemical and physiological changes in the heart and finally leads to cardiac dysfunctions, such as decreasing contractile tension, rate of tension development, heart rate, coronary flow rate and atrioventricular node conductivity. Although many progresses have been made, the mechanism responsible for cadmium-induced cellular alternations and cardiac toxicity is still not fully understood. In the present study, we demonstrated that cadmium toxicity induced dramatic endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress and impaired energy homoeostasis in cultured cardiomyocytes. Moreover, cadmium toxicity may inhibit protein kinase B (AKT)/mTOR (mammalian target of rapamycin) pathway to reduce energy productions, by either disrupting the glucose metabolism or inhibiting mitochondrial respiratory gene expressions. Our work will help to reveal a novel mechanism to clarify the role of cadmium toxicity to cardiomyocytes and provide new possibilities for the treatment of cardiovascular diseases related to cadmium toxicity., (© 2015 Authors.)