Ischemia alone is sufficient to induce TNF-alpha mRNA and peptide in the myocardium.
Over-production of tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha) following myocardial ischemia-reperfusion contributes to cardiac dysfunction, and anti-TNF-alpha has therapeutic potential for myocardial protection in cardiac surgery with obligatory ischemia. It remains unclear, however, whether myocardial TNF-alpha production occurs during ischemia and whether cardiac myocytes constitute a source of myocardial TNF-alpha. Ischemia alone has been shown to activate myocardial NF-kappaB. We hypothesized that ischemia alone is sufficient to induce myocardial TNF-alpha gene expression and peptide synthesis. We examined TNF-alpha production and NF-kappaB activation in the isolated rat heart subjected to global normothermic ischemia. Myocardial ischemia resulted in rapid IkappaB-alpha degradation and NF-kappaB activation. Immunofluorescence staining detected NF-KB intranuclear translocation primarily in myocardial interstitial cells. Ischemia alone induced a time-dependent increase in myocardial TNF-alpha. TNF-alpha peptide increased to 20.3+/-3.0 pg/mg after 25 min of ischemia (P < 0.05 vs 8.9+/-2.0 pg/mg in perfusion control). TNF-alpha was also localized to myocardial interstitial cells. Increased TNF-alpha peptide level correlated with TNF-alpha mRNA expression. We conclude that ischemia alone induces TNF-a gene expression and peptide synthesis in the myocardium that are associated with NF-kappaB activation. Non-myocytes constitute the main source of myocardial TNF-alpha following ischemia. The results suggest that therapeutic strategies attempting to decrease myocardial TNF-alpha production need to be applied before or in the early phase of ischemia.
Shames
Brian D
BD
Department of Surgery, University of Colorado Health Sciences Center, Denver 80262, USA.
Barton
Hazel H
HH
Reznikov
Leonid L
LL
Cairns
Charles B
CB
Banerjee
Anirban
A
Harken
Alden H
AH
Meng
Xianzhong
X
D000818:Animals; D066298:In Vitro Techniques; D008297:Male; D017202:Myocardial Ischemia / Q000378:metabolism*; D015425:Myocardial Reperfusion; D009206:Myocardium / Q000378:metabolism; D016328:NF-kappa B / Q000378:metabolism; D012333:RNA, Messenger / Q000378:metabolism; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D014158:Transcription, Genetic; D014409:Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*
D016328:NF-kappa B; D012333:RNA, Messenger; D014409:Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha