High-Dose Testosterone Propionate Treatment Reverses the Effects of Endurance Training on Myocardial Antioxidant Defenses in Adolescent Male Rats

This study was aimed at evaluation of changes in activities of selected antioxidant enzymes (superoxide dismutase, catalase, glutathione peroxidase, and glutathione reductase) and contents of key nonenzymatic antioxidants (glutathione, protein thiol groups, and α- and γ-tocopherols) in the left heart ventricle of young male Wistar rats subjected to endurance training (treadmill running, 1 h daily, 5 days a week, for 6 weeks) or/and testosterone propionate treatment (8 or 80 mg/kg body weight, intramuscularly, once a week, for 6 weeks) during adolescence. The training alone increased the activities of key antioxidant enzymes, but lowered the pool of nonenzymatic antioxidants and enhanced myocardial oxidative stress as evidenced by elevation of the lipid peroxidation biomarker malondialdehyde. The lower-dose testosterone treatment showed mixed effects on the individual components of the antioxidant defense system, but markedly enhanced lipid peroxidation. The higher-dose testosterone treatment decreased the activities of the antioxidant enzymes, lowered the contents of the nonenzymatic antioxidants, except for that of γ-tocopherol, reversed the effect of endurance training on the antioxidant enzymes activities, and enhanced lipid peroxidation more than the lower-dose treatment. These data demonstrate the potential risk to cardiac health from exogenous androgen use, either alone or in combination with endurance training, in adolescents

Sex-specific pathways in early cardiac response to pressure overload in mice

Pressure overload (PO) first causes cardiac hypertrophy and then heart failure (HF), which are associated with sex differences in cardiac morphology and function. We aimed to identify genes that may cause HF-related sex differences. We used a transverse aortic constriction (TAC) mouse model leading to hypertrophy without sex differences in cardiac function after 2 weeks, but with sex differences in hypertrophy 6 and 9 weeks after TAC. Cardiac gene expression was analyzed 2 weeks after surgery. Deregulated genes were classified into functional gene ontology (GO) categories and used for pathway analysis. Classical marker genes of hypertrophy were similarly upregulated in both sexes (α-actin, ANP, BNP, CTGF). Thirty-five genes controlling mitochondrial function (PGC-1, cytochrome oxidase, carnitine palmitoyl transferase, acyl-CoA dehydrogenase, pyruvate dehydrogenase kinase) had lower expression in males compared to females after TAC. Genes encoding ribosomal proteins and genes associated with extracellular matrix remodeling exhibited relative higher expression in males (collagen 3, matrix metalloproteinase 2, TIMP2, and TGFβ2, all about twofold) after TAC. We confirmed 87% of the gene expression by real-time polymerase chain reaction. By GO classification, female-specific genes were related to mitochondria and metabolism and males to matrix and biosynthesis. Promoter studies confirmed the upregulation of PGC-1 by E2. Less downregulation of metabolic genes in female hearts and increased protein synthesis capacity and deregulation of matrix remodeling in male hearts characterize the sex-specific early response to PO. These differences could contribute to subsequent sex differences in cardiac function and HF

AMP-Activated Protein Kinase-Regulated Activation of the PGC-1α Promoter in Skeletal Muscle Cells

The mechanisms by which PGC-1α gene expression is controlled in skeletal muscle remains largely undefined. Thus, we sought to investigate the transcriptional regulation of PGC-1α using AICAR, an activator of AMPK, that is known to increase PGC-1α expression. A 2.2 kb fragment of the human PGC-1α promoter was cloned and sequence analysis revealed that this TATA-less sequence houses putative consensus sites including a GC-box, a CRE, several IRSs, a SRE, binding sites for GATA, MEF2, p 53, NF-κB, and EBox binding proteins. AMPK activation for 24 hours increased PGC-1α promoter activity with concomitant increases in mRNA expression. The effect of AICAR on transcriptional activation was mediated by an overlapping GATA/EBox binding site at −495 within the PGC-1α promoter based on gel shift analyses that revealed increases in GATA/EBox DNA binding. Mutation of the EBox within the GATA/EBox binding site in the promoter reduced basal promoter activity and completely abolished the AICAR effect. Supershift analyses identified USF-1 as a DNA binding transcription factor potentially involved in regulating PGC-1α promoter activity, which was confirmed in vivo by ChIP. Overexpression of either GATA-4 or USF-1 alone increased the p851 PGC-1α promoter activity by 1.7- and 2.0-fold respectively, while co-expression of GATA-4 and USF-1 led to an additive increase in PGC-1α promoter activity. The USF-1-mediated increase in PGC-1α promoter activation led to similar increases at the mRNA level. Our data identify a novel AMPK-mediated regulatory pathway that regulates PGC-1α gene expression. This could represent a potential therapeutic target to control PGC-1α expression in skeletal muscle

Quantificação de fatores de crescimento na pele de equinos tratada com plasma rico em plaquetas

O plasma rico em plaquetas (PRP) é um produto derivado da centrifugação do sangue total, sendo rico em fatores bioativos, como os de crescimento. Apesar da ampla utilização em processos cicatriciais, há controvérsia sobre a eficácia da terapia na cicatrização cutânea. O objetivo desse estudo foi quantificar e comparar a concentração dos fatores TGF-β1 e PDGF-BB no PRP, plasma sanguíneo e pele, durante diferentes fases do processo de cicatrização da pele tratada ou não com PRP. Foram utilizados sete equinos machos castrados, mestiços, hígidos, com idade entre 16 e 17 (16,14±0,63) anos. Três lesões em formato quadrangular (6,25cm²) foram produzidas cirurgicamente nas regiões glúteas direita e esquerda de todos os animais. Doze horas após indução das feridas, 0,5mL do PRP foi administrado em cada uma das quatro extremidades das feridas de uma das regiões glúteas (Grupo tratado = GT), escolhida aleatoriamente. A região contralateral foi utilizada como controle (GC). As feridas foram submetidas à limpeza diária com água Milli Q, e amostras foram obtidas mediante biópsias realizadas com Punch de 6mm. Foram obtidas seis biópsias de pele, sendo a primeira realizada logo após a produção da ferida (T0), e as demais com 1 (T1) 2 (T2) 7 (T3) e 14 (T4) dias após a indução da lesão. A sexta biópsia (T5) foi obtida após completo fechamento da pele, que ocorreu aproximadamente aos 37 dias (36,85±7,45, GC; 38,85±6,46, GT). Também foram obtidas amostras de sangue com EDTA em todos os tempos mencionados. A quantificação dos fatores de crescimento TGF-β1 e PDGF-BB na pele, PRP e plasma sanguíneo foi realizada pela técnica ELISA. Os dados foram analisados estatisticamente pelo teste t, correlação de Pearson e regressão, utilizando nível de significância de 5%. Não houve diferença entre os grupos, nos valores dos dois fatores de crescimento mensurados na pele, nos diferentes tempos. Também não houve correlação entre a quantidade dos fatores de crescimento presentes na pele e no plasma. Por outro lado, correlação positiva foi observada entre PRP e pele no grupo tratado, para os fatores de crescimento TGF-β1 (r=0,31) e PDGF-BB (r=0,38), bem como entre ambos os fatores de crescimento presentes no PRP (r=0,81). Considerando as concentrações dos fatores de crescimento no T0, os maiores valores cutâneos (p<0,05) do TGF-β1, em ambos os grupos, ocorreram nos tempos T3 e T5. Valores mais elevados (p<0,05) do PDGF-BB ocorreram no T4 (GT) e T5 (GC). No plasma não houve alteração nas concentrações desses fatores em relação ao T0, o que sugere que o PRP não acarreta efeito sistêmico, quando os procedimentos adotados na presente pesquisa são utilizados. A administração local de PRP no volume estudado, 12 h após indução cirúrgica de ferida cutânea na região glútea de equinos não ocasiona maiores concentrações dos fatores de crescimento TGF-β1 e PDGF-BB no plasma sanguíneo e pele, durante o processo de cicatrização

Nuclear membrane cholesterol can modulate nuclear nucleoside triphosphatase activity

NRC publication: Ye

Oxidation of nuclear membrane cholesterol inhibits nucleoside triphosphatase activity

NRC publication: Ye