title: Effects of docosahexaenoic acid on calcium pathway in adult rat cardiomyocytes.
abstract: In this study we examined the effect of polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs), in particular of docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), on calcium homeostasis in isolated adult rat cardiomyocytes exposed to KCl, ET-1 and anoxia. Free [Ca(2+)](i) in rat cardiomyocytes was 135.7 +/- 0.5 nM. Exposure to 50 mM KCl or 100 nM ET-1 resulted in a rise in free [Ca(2+)](i) in freshly isolated cells (465.4 +/- 15.6 nM and 311.3 +/- 12.6 nM, respectively) and in cultured cells (450.8 +/- 14.8 nM and 323.5 +/- 14.8 nM respectively). An acute treatment (20 minutes) with 10 microM DHA significantly reduced the KCl- and ET-1-induced [Ca(2+)](i) increase (300.9 +/- 18.1 nM and 232.08 +/- 11.8 nM, respectively). This reduction was greater after chronic treatment with DHA (72 h; 257.7 +/- 13.08 nM and 192.18 +/- 9.8 nM, respectively). Rat cardiomyocytes exposed to a 20 minute superfusion with anoxic solution, obtained by replacing O(2) with N(2) in gas mixture, showed a massive increase in cytosolic calcium (1200.2 +/- 50.2 nM). Longer exposure to anoxia induced hypercontraction and later death of rat cardiomyocytes. Preincubation with DHA reduced the anoxic effect on [Ca(2+)](i) (498.4 +/- 7.3 nM in acute and 200.2 +/- 12.2 nM in chronic treatment). In anoxic conditions 50 mM KCl and 100 nM ET-1 produced extreme and unmeasurable increases of [Ca(2+)](i.) Preincubation for 20 minutes with DHA reduced this phenomenon (856.1 +/- 20.3 nM and 782.3 +/- 7.6 nM, respectively). This reduction is more evident after a chronic treatment with DHA (257.7 +/- 10.6 nM and 232.2 +/- 12.5 nM, respectively). We conclude that in rat cardiomyocytes KCl, ET-1 and anoxia interfered with intracellular calcium concentrations by either modifying calcium levels or impairing calcium homeostasis. Acute, and especially chronic, DHA administration markedly reduced the damage induced by calcium overload in those cells.
authors.affiliation: Department of Experimental Medicine, Section of Pharmacology "Leonardo Donatelli", Faculty of Medicine, 2nd University of Naples, Via Costantinopoli 16, 80138, Naples, Italy.
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Rinaldi
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Di Pierro
authors.forename: M R
authors.initials: MR
authors.lastname: Vitelli
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: D'Amico
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Berrino
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Rossi
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Filippelli
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002118:Calcium / Q000378:metabolism*; D004281:Docosahexaenoic Acids / Q000494:pharmacology*; D019332:Endothelin-1 / Q000494:pharmacology; D006321:Heart / Q000187:drug effects; D000860:Hypoxia; D009206:Myocardium / Q000378:metabolism*; D011189:Potassium Chloride / Q000494:pharmacology; D051381:Rats; D017208:Rats, Wistar
chemical_list: D019332:Endothelin-1; D004281:Docosahexaenoic Acids; D011189:Potassium Chloride; D002118:Calcium