title: Hepatocyte growth factor protects cardiac myocytes against oxidative stress-induced apoptosis.
abstract: Hepatocyte growth factor (HGF) has been proposed as an endogenous cardioprotective agent against oxidative stress. The mechanism of HGF action in the heart, however, has not yet been elucidated. The present study demonstrates that HGF protects adult cardiac myocytes against oxidative stress-induced apoptosis. HGF, at the concentrations which can be detected in the plasma of humans subsequent to myocardial infarction, effectively attenuated death of isolated adult rat cardiac myocytes and cultured HL-1 cardiac muscle cells induced by apoptosis-inducing oxidative stress stimuli such as daunorubicin, serum deprivation, and hydrogen peroxide. We identified expression of c-Met HGF receptor in adult cardiac myocytes, which can be rapidly tyrosine phosphorylated in response to HGF treatment. HGF also activated MEK, p44/42 MAPK, and p90RSK. To determine if MEK-MAPK pathway may be involved in the mechanism of HGF-mediated cardiac myocyte protection, effects of a specific MEK inhibitor, PD98059, were studied. Pretreatment of cells with PD98059 partially blocked HGF signaling for protection against hydrogen peroxide-induced cell death. Thus, HGF protects cardiac myocytes against oxidative stress, in part, via activating MEK-MAPK pathway.
authors.affiliation: Antioxidants Research Laboratory, Jean Mayer USDA Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging at Tufts University, 711 Washington Street, Boston, MA 02111, USA.
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Kitta
authors.forename: R M
authors.initials: RM
authors.lastname: Day
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Ikeda
authors.forename: Y J
authors.initials: YJ
authors.lastname: Suzuki
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D017209:Apoptosis / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology*; D002478:Cells, Cultured / Q000166:cytology / Q000378:metabolism; D005419:Flavonoids / Q000378:metabolism / Q000494:pharmacology; D017228:Hepatocyte Growth Factor / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000494:pharmacology; D048728:MAP Kinase Kinase Kinase 1; D020935:MAP Kinase Signaling System / Q000502:physiology*; D008297:Male; D051379:Mice; D009206:Myocardium / Q000166:cytology / Q000378:metabolism*; D018384:Oxidative Stress / Q000502:physiology*; D017346:Protein Serine-Threonine Kinases / Q000037:antagonists & inhibitors / Q000378:metabolism; D019859:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-met / Q000378:metabolism*; D051381:Rats
chemical_list: D005419:Flavonoids; D017228:Hepatocyte Growth Factor; D019859:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-met; D017346:Protein Serine-Threonine Kinases; D048728:MAP Kinase Kinase Kinase 1; C482578:Map3k1 protein, mouse; C093973:2-(2-amino-3-methoxyphenyl)-4H-1-benzopyran-4-one