Calcium and mitochondrial metabolism in ceramide-induced cardiomyocyte death

AbstractCeramides are important intermediates in the biosynthesis and degradation of sphingolipids that regulate numerous cellular processes, including cell cycle progression, cell growth, differentiation and death. In cardiomyocytes, ceramides induce apoptosis by decreasing mitochondrial membrane potential and promoting cytochrome-c release. Ca2+ overload is a common feature of all types of cell death. The aim of this study was to determine the effect of ceramides on cytoplasmic Ca2+ levels, mitochondrial function and cardiomyocyte death. Our data show that C2-ceramide induces apoptosis and necrosis in cultured cardiomyocytes by a mechanism involving increased Ca2+ influx, mitochondrial network fragmentation and loss of the mitochondrial Ca2+ buffer capacity. These biochemical events increase cytosolic Ca2+ levels and trigger cardiomyocyte death via the activation of calpains

Regulación del acoplamiento mitocondriaretículo endoplásmico y el metabolismo mitocondrial durante el estrés proteotóxico mitocondrial

Tesis presentada a la Universidad de Chile para optar al grado académico de Doctor en BioquímicaLa acumulación de proteínas mal plegadas dentro de las mitocondrias genera una respuesta transcripcional adaptativa, denominada UPR mitocondrial. A través de esta respuesta, las mitocondrias señalizan hacia el núcleo para aumentar la expresión de genes que permiten restaurar la homeostasis proteica. Sin embargo, se desconoce si además de esta respuesta genética, existe un cambio adaptativo en el metabolismo celular en las etapas tempranas del estrés mitocondrial. El acoplamiento físico-funcional del retículo endoplásmico (RE) con la mitocondria es uno de los principales reguladores del metabolismo mitocondrial, el cual permite el traspaso directo de Ca2+ entre ambos organelos. En la mitocondria, el Ca2+ actúa como cofactor de enzimas que participan en el ciclo de Krebs, potenciando la producción de ATP. No obstante, actualmente no existe información sobre posibles cambios en el acoplamiento mitocondria-RE y su papel durante el estrés mitocondrial. A partir de estos antecedentes, se planteó como hipótesis de esta tesis que la acumulación de proteínas mal plegadas al interior de la mitocondria (UPR mitocondrial) favorece el aumento del metabolismo mitocondrial y el incremento en el contacto funcional entre mitocondria y RE. Para responder esta hipótesis se trabajó con la línea celular HeLa, induciendo el estrés mitocondrial mediante el tratamiento con doxiciclina, antibiótico que inhibe la traducción de proteínas en la mitocondria. De esta forma, se produce un desbalance entre la expresión de las subunidades nucleares y mitocondriales de los complejos respiratorios lo que lleva a estrés por acumulación de proteínas no ensambladas. En estas condiciones se estableció que el tratamiento con doxiciclina produce, entre las 24 y 72 h, un desbalance mito-nuclear de proteínas que son parte de los complejos respiratorios e induce la respuesta frente a este estrés en cuanto a expresión de marcadores de la UPR mitocondrial (CHOP, C/EBPβ, ClpP, mtHsp60), sin afectar la viabilidad celular. Por otra parte, a tiempos cortos de tratamiento, de entre 2 y 4 h, la doxiciclina aumentó los parámetros metabólicos celulares, como los niveles totales de ATP y el consumo de oxígeno. A estos mismos tiempos de tratamiento, doxiciclina incrementó los contactos físicos y funcionales entre mitocondrias y RE, evaluados mediante colocalización por inmunofluorescencia indirecta y cinéticas de captación de Ca2+ mitocondrial por microscopía confocal. Se puede concluir que el estrés mitocondrial inducido por doxiciclina estimula el acoplamiento RE-mitocondria y una potenciación del metabolismo celular a tiempos tempranos. Estos resultados sugieren que esta respuesta metabólica favorece la adaptación celular frente al estrés mitocondrialThe accumulation of unfolded proteins within the mitochondria generates an adaptive transcriptional response, denominated mitochondrial UPR. Through this response, the mitochondria signal back towards the nucleus to increase gene expression that allow restoring protein homeostasis. However, it is still unknown whether, in addition to this genetic response, there is an adaptive change in cell metabolism in the early stages of mitochondrial stress. The physical-functional coupling of the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) with the mitochondria is one of the main regulators of mitochondrial metabolism, which allows the direct transfer of Ca2+ between both organelles. In mitochondria, Ca2+ acts as a cofactor of enzymes involved in the Krebs cycle, enhancing ATP production. However, there is currently no information on possible changes in mitochondrial-ER coupling and its role during mitochondrial stress. From this background, we hypothesized that the accumulation of unfolded proteins inside the mitochondria (mitochondrial UPR) favours the increase in mitochondrial metabolism and in the functional contact between mitochondria and ER. To address this hypothesis, we worked with the HeLa cell line, inducing mitochondrial stress by treatment with doxycycline, an antibiotic that inhibits the translation of mitochondrial-encoded proteins. In this way, there is an imbalance between the expression of nuclear and mitochondrial subunits of the respiratory complexes leading to a stress by accumulation of non-assembled proteins. Under these conditions, we established that the treatment with doxycycline produces a mito-nuclear imbalance of the proteins, between 24 and 72 h, that are part of the respiratory complexes and induces the response against this stress as an expression of the mitochondrial UPR markers (CHOP, C/EBPβ, ClpP, mtHsp60), without affecting cell viability. On the other hand, at short treatment times (between 2 and 4 h), doxycycline increased cellular metabolic parameters, such as total ATP levels and oxygen consumption. At these times, doxycycline increases the physical and functional contacts between mitochondria and ER, evaluated by indirect immunofluorescence colocalization and kinetics of mitochondrial Ca2+ uptake using confocal microscopy. In summary, the mitochondrial stress induced by doxycycline stimulates an early mitochondrial-RE coupling and potentiates cell metabolism. These results suggest that this metabolic response favours cellular adaptation to mitochondrial stressConicyt; Fondecyt; Fonda

Regulación de la respuesta a insulina por ceramidas en el cardiomiocito a nivel de la dinámica mitocondrial

Magíster en Bioquímica, área de especialización Bioquímica Toxicológica y Diagnóstico MolecularMemoria para optar al Título de BioquímicaLa obesidad y la diabetes son condiciones altamente prevalentes que representan un importante factor de riesgo para el desarrollo de patologías cardiovasculares, principal causa de muerte entre los pacientes diabéticos. La lipotoxicidad y las alteraciones metabólicas juegan un papel fundamental en la resistencia a la hormona insulina y el daño cardiaco en estos pacientes. Los cardiomiocitos son las unidades funcionales del corazón y poseen un alto requerimiento energético que depende en su mayor parte de la función mitocondrial. Las mitocondrias forman una red dinámica que se remodela constantemente por eventos de fisión y fusión. La mantención de una morfología mitocondrial balanceada es fundamental para mantener una funcionalidad adecuada de este organelo. El objetivo de este trabajo fue investigar el efecto de las ceramidas, que derivan del metabolismo lipídico, en la señalización de la insulina y la dinámica mitocondrial en cultivos primarios de cardiomiocitos de rata. La señalización de insulina se evaluó mediante Western blot para Akt fosforilada y la morfología mitocondrial por microscopía confocal en células teñidas con Mitotracker Green. El tratamiento de los cardiomiocitos con C2-ceramida (40 μM, 3 h) disminuyó la fosforilación de Akt basalmente y en respuesta a insulina y favoreció la fisión mitocondrial, aumentando la translocación de la proteína de fisión Drp-1 hacia este organelo. Para evaluar si ambos efectos estaban relacionados, se inhibió la actividad de Drp-1 mediante el uso de un dominante negativo y de un inhibidor químico, antes del tratamiento con C2-ceramida. La inhibición de Drp-1 mediante ambas herramientas previno la fisión mitocondrial causada por C2-ceramida y rescató la fosforilación de Akt en respuesta a insulina. Trabajos previos de nuestro laboratorio muestran que el tratamiento de los cardiomiocitos con palmitato 500 μM durante 3 h también induce fisión de la red mitocondrial. En este trabajo se mostró que al inhibir la síntesis de ceramidas a partir de palmitato se previene, en parte, los efectos de este ácido graso sobre la dinámica mitocondrial de los cardiomiocitos. En conclusión, la fragmentación de la red mitocondrial inducida por ceramidas es necesaria para la disminución de la señalización de insulina en los cardiomiocitos. Además, la fisión mitocondrial inducida por palmitato en este modelo depende en parte de la generación de ceramidas.Obesity and diabetes are highly prevalent conditions that represent an important risk factor for the development of cardiovascular diseases, the main cause of death in diabetic patients. Lipotoxicity and metabolic alterations take part in insulin resistance and heart damage in these patients. Cardiomyocytes are the functional basic units of the heart and have a high energy requirement that depends largely on mitochondrial function. Mitochondria form a dynamic network that is constantly remodelled by fission and fusion events. The maintenance of a balanced mitochondrial morphology is critical to maintain a proper functionality of this organelle. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of ceramides, derived from lipid metabolism, in insulin signalling and mitochondrial dynamics in primary cultures of rat cardiomyocytes. Insulin signalling was assessed by Western blot for phosphorylated Akt and mitochondrial morphology by confocal microscopy in Mitotracker Green-stained cells. Treatment of cardiomyocytes with C2-ceramide (40 μM, 3 h) decreased the phosphorylation of Akt at baseline and in response to insulin and induced mitochondrial fission, increasing the translocation of the fission protein Drp-1 to this organelle. To assess whether both effects were related, Drp-1 activity was inhibited by using a dominant negative and a chemical inhibitor, before treatment with C2-ceramide. The inhibition of Drp-1 by both tools prevented mitochondrial fission caused by C2-ceramide and rescued Akt phosphorylation in response to insulin. Previous work in our laboratory showed that treatment of cardiomyocytes with palmitate 500 μM for 3 h also induces mitochondrial fission. We showed that inhibiting the synthesis of ceramides from palmitate prevented in part the effects of this fatty acid on mitochondrial dynamics in cardiomyocytes. In conclusion, the mitochondrial network fragmentation induced by ceramides is required for the decrease of insulin signalling in cardiomyocytes. Furthermore, palmitate-induced mitochondrial fission in this model depends in part on the generation of ceramides.Fondap, Fondecy

Autophagy Activation in Zebrafish Heart Regeneration

Autophagy is an evolutionarily conserved process that plays a key role in the maintenance of overall cellular health. While it has been suggested that autophagy may elicit cardioprotective and pro-survival modulating functions, excessive activation of autophagy can also be detrimental. In this regard, the zebrafish is considered a hallmark model for vertebrate regeneration, since contrary to adult mammals, it is able to faithfully regenerate cardiac tissue. Interestingly, the role that autophagy may play in zebrafish heart regeneration has not been studied yet. In the present work, we hypothesize that, in the context of a well-established injury model of ventricular apex resection, autophagy plays a critical role during cardiac regeneration and its regulation can directly affect the zebrafish regenerative potential. We studied the autophagy events occurring upon injury using electron microscopy, in vivo tracking of autophagy markers, and protein analysis. Additionally, using pharmacological tools, we investigated how rapamycin, an inducer of autophagy, affects regeneration relevant processes. Our results show that a tightly regulated autophagic response is triggered upon injury and during the early stages of the regeneration process. Furthermore, treatment with rapamycin caused an impairment in the cardiac regeneration outcome. These findings are reminiscent of the pathophysiological description of an injured human heart and hence put forward the zebrafish as a model to study the poorly understood double-sword effect that autophagy has in cardiac homeostasis.Agencia Nacional de Investigacion y Desarrollo (ANID), Chile: FONDAP 15130011 15090007 Comision Nacional de Investigacion Cientifica y Tecnologica (CONICYT) CONICYT FONDECYT 1200490 3160086 3190546 CONICYT PhD Fellowship 2113045

Effects of pregnancy and changes in body weight on polycystic ovary syndrome phenotypesaccording to the Rotterdam criteria Clasificación de los fenotipos de síndrome de ovario poliquístico de acuerdo a los criterios de Rotterdam: ¿una condición estática o

© 2014, Sociedad Medica de Santiago. All rights reserved. Background: Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS) is tightly associated with insulin resistance and obesity and characterized by hyperandrogenism, chronic oligo-anovulation and polycystic ovarian morphology when fully expressed. The 2003 Rotterdam consensus proposed that two or three of these features were necessary to make the diagnosis, which generated four phenotypes. Several studies have suggested that these phenotypes could differ in their metabolic and endocrine characteristics and that they could vary in the same patient when analyzed throughout life. Aim: To determine if the initial classification of PCOS phenotypes is modified by different physiological conditions. Material and Methods: We performed a non-concurrent prospective analysis of 88 women with PCOS according to the Rotterdam criteria. The effect of physiological conditions such as changes in body weight, pregnancy and ageing more than five years on PCOS phenotype

Effects of Trimetazidine on Right Ventricular Function and Ventricular Remodeling in Patients with Pulmonary Artery Hypertension: A Randomised Controlled Trial

Background: Pulmonary artery hypertension (PAH) is a chronic and progressive disease. Although current therapy has improved the disease prognosis, PAH has a poor survival rate. The key feature leading to disease progression and death is right ventricular (RV) failure. Methods and results: We assessed the role of trimetazidine, a fatty acid beta-oxidation (FAO) inhibitor, in right ventricular function, remodeling, and functional class in PAH patients, with a placebo-controlled double-blind, case-crossover trial. Twenty-seven PAH subjects were enrolled, randomized, and assigned to trimetazidine or placebo for three months and then reallocated to the other study arm. The primary endpoint was RV morphology and function change after three months of treatment. Secondary endpoints were the change in exercise capacity assessed by a 6 min walk test after three months of treatment and the change in pro-BNP and Galectin-3 plasma levels after three months. Trimetazidine use was safe and well-tolerated. After three months of treatment, patients in the trimetazidine group showed a small but significant reduction of RV diastolic area, and a substantial increase in the 6 min walk distance (418 vs. 438 mt, p = 0.023), without significant changes in biomarkers. Conclusions: A short course of trimetazidine is safe and well-tolerated on PAH patients, and it is associated with significant increases in the 6MWT and minor but significant improvement in RV remodeling. The therapeutic potential of this drug should be evaluated in larger clinical trials

mTORC1 inhibitor rapamycin and ER stressor tunicamycin induce differential patterns of ER-mitochondria coupling

Efficient mitochondrial Ca2+ uptake takes place at contact points between the ER and mitochondria, and represents a key regulator of many cell functions. In a previous study with HeLa cells, we showed that ER-to-mitochondria Ca2+ transfer increases during the early phase of ER stress induced by tunicamycin as an adaptive response to stimulate mitochondrial bioenergetics. It remains unknown whether other types of stress signals trigger similar responses. Here we observed that rapamycin, which inhibits the nutrient-sensing complex mTORC1, increased ER-mitochondria coupling in HeLa cells to a similar extent as did tunicamycin. Interestingly, although global responses to both stressors were comparable, there were notable differences in the spatial distribution of such changes. While tunicamycin increased organelle proximity primarily in the perinuclear region, rapamycin increased organelle contacts throughout the entire cell. These differences were paralleled by dissimilar alterations in the distribution of regulatory proteins of the ER-mitochondria interface, heterogeneities in mitochondrial Ca2+ uptake, and the formation of domains within the mitochondrial network with varying mitochondrial transmembrane potential. Collectively, these data suggest that while increasing ER-mitochondria coupling appears to represent a general response to cell stress, the intracellular distribution of the associated responses needs to be tailored to meet specific cellular requirements.CONICYT FONDAP 15130011 FONDECYT 1161156 11150282 Postdoctoral FONDECYT 3160226 3150510 NIH HL097768 HL09805

GDF-11 prevents cardiomyocyte hypertrophy by maintaining the sarcoplasmic reticulum-mitochondria communication

Growth differentiation factor 11 (GDF11) is a novel factor with controversial effects on cardiac hypertrophy both in vivo and in vitro. Although recent evidence has corroborated that GDF11 prevents the development of cardiac hypertrophy, its molecular mechanism remains unclear. In our previous work, we showed that norepinephrine (NE), a physiological pro-hypertrophic agent, increases cytoplasmic Ca2+ levels accompanied by a loss of physical and functional communication between sarcoplasmic reticulum (SR) and mitochondria, with a subsequent reduction in the mitochondrial Ca2+ uptake and mitochondrial metabolism. In order to study the anti-hypertrophic mechanism of GDF11, our aim was to investigate whether GDF11 prevents the loss of SR-mitochondria communication triggered by NE. Our results show that: a) GDF11 prevents hypertrophy in cultured neonatal rat ventricular myocytes treated with NE. b) GDF11 attenuates the NE-induced loss of contact sites between both organelles. c) GDF11 increases oxidative mitochondrial metabolism by stimulating mitochondrial Ca2+ uptake. In conclusion, the GDF11-dependent maintenance of physical and functional communication between SR and mitochondria is critical to allow Ca2+ transfer between both organelles and energy metabolism in the cardiomyocyte and to avoid the activation of Ca2+-dependent pro-hypertrophic signaling pathways

Inhibition of the proteasome preserves Mitofusin-2 and mitochondrial integrity, protecting cardiomyocytes during ischemia-reperfusion injury

Cardiomyocyte loss is the main cause of myocardial dysfunction following an ischemia-reperfusion (IR) injury. Mitochondrial dysfunction and altered mitochondrial network dynamics play central roles in cardiomyocyte death. Proteasome inhibition is cardioprotective in the setting of IR; however, the mechanisms underlying this protection are not well-understood. Several proteins that regulate mitochondrial dynamics and energy metabolism, including Mitofusin-2 (Mfn2), are degraded by the proteasome. The aim of this study was to evaluate whether proteasome inhibition can protect cardiomyocytes from IR damage by maintaining Mfn2 levels and preserving mitochondrial network integrity. Using ex vivo Langendorff-perfused rat hearts and in vitro neonatal rat ventricular myocytes, we showed that the proteasome inhibitor MG132 reduced IR-induced cardiomyocyte death. Moreover, MG132 preserved mitochondrial mass, prevented mitochondrial network fragmentation, and abolished IR-induced reductions in Mfn2 levels in heart tissue and cultured cardiomyocytes. Interestingly, Mfn2 overexpression also prevented cardiomyocyte death. This effect was apparently specific to Mfn2, as overexpression of Miro1, another protein implicated in mitochondrial dynamics, did not confer the same protection. Our results suggest that proteasome inhibition protects cardiomyocytes from IR damage. This effect could be partly mediated by preservation of Mfn2 and therefore mitochondrial integrity.Comisión Nacional de Investigación Científica y Tecnológica (CONICYT, Chile), Fondo Nacional de Desarrollo Científico y Tecnológico (FONDECYT): 1130407, 1180613, 11170962, 1160704, 1200490, 11181000, 3190546, 3160549. Comisión Nacional de Investigación Científica y Tecnológica (CONICYT), CONICYT FONDAP

IGF-1 boosts mitochondrial function by a Ca2+ uptake-dependent mechanism in cultured human and rat cardiomyocytes

A physiological increase in cardiac workload results in adaptive cardiac remodeling, characterized by increased oxidative metabolism and improvements in cardiac performance. Insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1) has been identified as a critical regulator of physiological cardiac growth, but its precise role in cardiometabolic adaptations to physiological stress remains unresolved. Mitochondrial calcium (Ca2+) handling has been proposed to be required for sustaining key mitochondrial dehydrogenase activity and energy production during increased workload conditions, thus ensuring the adaptive cardiac response. We hypothesized that IGF-1 enhances mitochondrial energy production through a Ca2+-dependent mechanism to ensure adaptive cardiomyocyte growth. We found that stimulation with IGF-1 resulted in increased mitochondrial Ca2+ uptake in neonatal rat ventricular myocytes and human embryonic stem cell-derived cardiomyocytes, estimated by fluorescence microscopy and indirectly by a reduction in the pyruvate dehydrogenase phosphorylation. We showed that IGF-1 modulated the expression of mitochondrial Ca2+ uniporter (MCU) complex subunits and increased the mitochondrial membrane potential; consistent with higher MCU-mediated Ca2+ transport. Finally, we showed that IGF-1 improved mitochondrial respiration through a mechanism dependent on MCU-mediated Ca2+ transport. In conclusion, IGF-1-induced mitochondrial Ca2+ uptake is required to boost oxidative metabolism during cardiomyocyte adaptive growth