title: Sympathectomy or doxazosin, but not propranolol, blunt myocardial interstitial fibrosis in pressure-overload hypertrophy.
abstract: The adaptive changes that develop in the pressure-overloaded left ventricular (LV) myocardium include cardiomyocyte hypertrophy and interstitial fibrosis. Although the former is known to depend to a sizeable extent on sympathetic (over)activity, little information exists whether the same applies to the latter, ie, whether excess catecholamine exposure contributes to the imbalance between collagen deposition by fibroblasts and degradation by matrix metalloproteases (MMPs), eventually leading to LV collagen accumulation. Sprague-Dawley rats were subjected to abdominal aortic banding (B) or sham operation (S) and treated with beta-blockade (Bb, oral propranolol, 40 mg/kg per day), chemical sympathectomy (Sx, 6-hydroxydopamine, 150 mg/kg intraperitoneal twice per week) or vehicle (Vh). Ten weeks later, systolic blood pressure, LV weight, collagen abundance (computer-aided histology), zymographic matrix metalloproteinase (MMP)-2 activity and its specific tissue inhibitor concentration (TIMP-2) were measured. Both sympathectomy and beta-blockade failed to attenuate the banding-induced blood pressure elevation but significantly attenuated the attendant LV hypertrophy. As expected, pressure-overload hypertrophy was associated with interstitial fibrosis (collagen: 4.37+/-1.23% BVh versus 1.23+/-0.44% SVh, P<0.05), which was abolished by sympathectomy (2.55+/-1.31%, P=not significant versus SSx) but left unchanged by beta-blockade (4.11+/-1.23%, P<0.05 versus both SBb and BSx). beta-blockade, but not sympathectomy, was also associated with an increased TIMP-2/MMP-2 ratio (P<0.05), indicating reduced interstitial collagenolytic activity. In separate groups of banded and sham-operated rats, treatment with the alpha-receptor blocker doxazosin (10 mg/kg per day) displayed similar antifibrotic and biochemical effects as sympathectomy. Thus in the course of experimental pressure overload, the sympathetic nervous system plays a major pro-fibrotic role, which is mediated via alpha-adrenergic but not beta-adrenergic receptors.
authors.affiliation: Clinica Medica II, IRCCS San Matteo, Università di Pavia, Italy.
authors.forename: Stefano
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Perlini
authors.forename: Giuseppina
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Palladini
authors.forename: Ivana
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Ferrero
authors.forename: Rossana
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Tozzi
authors.forename: Silvia
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Fallarini
authors.forename: Angelica
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Facoetti
authors.forename: Rosanna
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Nano
authors.forename: Francesca
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Clari
authors.forename: Giuseppe
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Busca
authors.forename: Roberto
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Fogari
authors.forename: Alberto U
authors.initials: AU
authors.lastname: Ferrari
mesh_terms: D000317:Adrenergic alpha-Antagonists / Q000494:pharmacology*; D000319:Adrenergic beta-Antagonists / Q000494:pharmacology; D000818:Animals; D001794:Blood Pressure; D006332:Cardiomegaly / Q000209:etiology* / Q000473:pathology*; D003094:Collagen / Q000378:metabolism; D017292:Doxazosin / Q000494:pharmacology*; D005355:Fibrosis; D006973:Hypertension / Q000150:complications* / Q000503:physiopathology; D008168:Lung / Q000503:physiopathology; D008297:Male; D020778:Matrix Metalloproteinase 2 / Q000378:metabolism; D009206:Myocardium / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology*; D011433:Propranolol / Q000494:pharmacology; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D013563:Sympathectomy, Chemical; D019716:Tissue Inhibitor of Metalloproteinase-2 / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D000317:Adrenergic alpha-Antagonists; D000319:Adrenergic beta-Antagonists; D019716:Tissue Inhibitor of Metalloproteinase-2; D003094:Collagen; D011433:Propranolol; D020778:Matrix Metalloproteinase 2; D017292:Doxazosin