title: Remote trauma sensitizes hepatic microcirculation to endothelin via caveolin inhibition of eNOS activity.
abstract: This study addresses the microvascular mechanisms by which a remote, mild stress such as blunt trauma sensitizes the liver to injury. Rats received closed femur fracture (FFx), and 24 h later livers were isolated and perfused at a similar starting flow rate for assessment of vascular response to endothelin-1 (ET-1). Sinusoidal volumetric flow (QS), red blood cell velocity (VRBC), and sinusoidal diameter (Ds) were determined by intravital microscopy. Baseline portal resistance in livers from FFx rats was not changed. The FFx group showed a lower baseline VRBC (322.9 +/- 26.4 and 207.3 +/- 17.2 microm/s in sham and FFx,) and QS (28.4 +/- 4.2 and 17.6 +/- 2.1 pL/s in sham and FFx, P < 0.05). ET-1 caused a decrease in the VRBC in sham but no change after FFx. In contrast, Ds was unchanged by ET-1 in sham but decreased in FFx (10.3 +/- 0.4 to 10.7 +/- 0.5 vs. 10.6 +/- 0.4 to 9.0 +/- 0.4 microm at 10 min in sham and FFx groups, P < 0.05). The overall result of these changes was a greater decrease in sinusoidal flow in FFx compared with sham. There was no significant change in mRNA for ET-1, endothelin A (ETA) receptor, or iNOS (inducible nitric oxide synthase) in FFx compared with sham. However, endothelin B (ETB) receptor mRNA and eNOS (endothelial nitric oxide synthase) mRNA were increased in the FFx group (ETB, 54.81 +/- 8.08 in sham vs. 83.28 +/- 8.19 in FFx; eNOS, 56.11 +/- 2.53 in sham vs. 83.31 +/- 5.51 in FFx; P < 0.05) while the levels of these proteins remained unchanged. Caveolin-1 (cav-1) protein levels were elevated in FFx, and coimmunoprecipitation with both ETB and eNOS showed increased associations with these proteins, suggesting a possible inactivation of eNOS. The eNOS activity was also blunted in FFx animals in the presence of increased cav-1 expression. Taken together, these results demonstrate that remote trauma sensitizes the liver to the sinusoidal constrictor effect of ET-1. We propose that this hyperresponsiveness occurs as a result of uncoupling of the ETB receptor from eNOS activity mediated by interaction of eNOS and possibly the ETB receptor with increased caveolin-1. This vascular sensitization that occurs after FFx may contribute to the exacerbation of injury during subsequent stresses.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biology, University of North Carolina, Charlotte, North Carolina 28223, USA.
authors.forename: Jean H
authors.initials: JH
authors.lastname: Ashburn
authors.forename: Rajiv
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Baveja
authors.forename: Nicole
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Kresge
authors.forename: Katarzyna
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Korneszczuk
authors.forename: Steve
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Keller
authors.forename: Amel
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Karaa
authors.forename: Yukihiro
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Yokoyama
authors.forename: Jian X
authors.initials: JX
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.forename: Toan
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Huynh
authors.forename: Mark G
authors.initials: MG
authors.lastname: Clemens
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001783:Blood Flow Velocity; D015153:Blotting, Western; D002147:Calmodulin / Q000378:metabolism; D002384:Catalysis; D051242:Caveolin 1; D022461:Caveolins / Q000378:metabolism*; D019332:Endothelin-1 / Q000378:metabolism; D016232:Endothelins / Q000378:metabolism*; D005596:Fractures, Closed; D006801:Humans; D047468:Immunoprecipitation; D008099:Liver / Q000098:blood supply* / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology; D008297:Male; D008833:Microcirculation; D008856:Microscopy, Fluorescence; D018715:Microscopy, Video; D019001:Nitric Oxide Synthase / Q000378:metabolism*; D052250:Nitric Oxide Synthase Type III; D010455:Peptides / Q000737:chemistry; D010477:Perfusion; D011485:Protein Binding; D012313:RNA / Q000378:metabolism; D012333:RNA, Messenger / Q000378:metabolism; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D020133:Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction; D013997:Time Factors; D014947:Wounds and Injuries
chemical_list: C495540:CAV1 protein, human; D002147:Calmodulin; C495537:Cav1 protein, rat; D051242:Caveolin 1; D022461:Caveolins; D019332:Endothelin-1; D016232:Endothelins; D010455:Peptides; D012333:RNA, Messenger; D012313:RNA; C496314:NOS3 protein, human; D019001:Nitric Oxide Synthase; D052250:Nitric Oxide Synthase Type III; C496316:Nos3 protein, rat