甘氨酸受体在大鼠心肌细胞的表达

目的：检测成年大鼠心肌组织和新生大鼠心 肌细胞是否有甘氨酸受体（GlyR）mRNA和蛋白的表达。方法：选用成年 雄性SD大鼠心肌组织和新生SD大鼠培养心肌细胞，提取总RNA和膜蛋白，用逆转录－巢式聚 合酶链反应（RT-PCR）和蛋白免疫印迹（Western blotting）检测GlyRα1和β亚基的mRNA 和蛋白表达。结果：成年大鼠心肌组织和新生大鼠培养心肌细胞均有与 脊髓组织GlyRβ亚基极为相似的mRNA和蛋白的表达；对于GlyRα1亚基，仅在新生SD大鼠培 养心肌细胞发现有mRNA的表达。结论：本研究证实在成年大鼠心肌组织 和新生大鼠心肌细胞中有与脊髓组织相似的GlyR亚基的表达，提示大鼠心肌细胞的膜上有Gl yR的存在。     

Intercalated disk remodeling in delta-sarcoglycan-deficient hamsters fed with an alpha-linolenic acid-enriched diet

Cardiomyocyte intercalated disks of delta-sarcoglycan-deficient cardiomyopathic hamsters (CMPHs) exhibit a pathological accumulation of the N-cadherin/catenin complex. CMPHs fed with an alpha-linolenic acid (ALA)-enriched diet (CMPH/FS) display an extended longevity compared to those fed with a standard diet (CMPH/PT) owing to, among others, the amelioration of both cardiac tissue structure and myocardial function. The present investigation was aimed at evaluating whether and to what extent the ALA-enriched diet affects the remodeling of CMPH cardiomyocyte intercalated disks and the expression of molecules, including N-cadherin, catenins and connexin 43 (CX43), involved in their organization. Western blot and immunohistochemical analysis demonstrated that the expression of N-cadherin, alpha- and beta-catenin is significantly reduced in cardiomyocyte intercalated disks of CMPH/FS vs. CMPH/PT and is lowered to levels similar to those found in healthy hamsters (GSH/PT), as well as transmission electron microscopy indicated that the cardiomyocyte intercalated disk ultrastructure is also re-established in CMPH/FS. In addition, the delocalization of CX43 as well as the presence of gap junctions were detectable at the lateral plasmamembrane of CMPH/FS cardiomyocytes, while the expression of myocardial CX43 was markedly reduced in both CMPH/PT and CMPH/FS, as compared to GSH/PT. Collectively, the present results demonstrate a substantial effect of an ALA-enriched diet on cardiomyocyte intercalated disk structure and molecular composition and further supports the beneficial effects of omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids in the prevention of potentially dangerous arrhythmias in cardiac diseases.     

Localization of the novel Xin protein to the adherens junction complex in cardiac and skeletal muscle during development.

Previously, we demonstrated that chick embryos treated with antisense oligonucleotides against a striated muscle-specific Xin exhibit abnormal cardiac morphogenesis (Wang et al. [1999] Development 126:1281-1294); therefore, we surmised a role for Xin in cardiac development. Herein, we examine the developmental expression of Xin through immunofluorescent staining of whole-mount mouse embryos and frozen heart sections. Xin expression is first observed within the heart tube of embryonic day 8.0 (E8.0) mice, exhibiting a peripheral localization within the cardiomyocytes. Colocalization of Xin with both beta-catenin and N-cadherin is observed throughout embryogenesis and into adulthood. Additionally, Xin is found associated with beta-catenin within the N-cadherin complex in embryonic chick hearts by coimmunoprecipitation. Xin is detected earlier than vinculin in the developing heart and colocalizes with vinculin at the intercalated disc but not at the sarcolemma within embryonic and postnatal hearts. At E10.0, Xin is also detected in the developing somites and later in the myotendon junction of skeletal muscle but not within the costameric regions of muscle. In cultured C2C12 myotubes, the Xin protein is found in many speckled and filamentous structures, coincident with tropomyosin in the stress fibers. Additionally, Xin is enriched in the regions of cell-cell contacts. These data demonstrate that Xin is one of the components at the adherens junction of cardiac muscle, and its counterpart in skeletal muscle, the myotendon junction. Furthermore, temporal and spatial expressions of Xin in relation to intercalated disc proteins and thin filament proteins suggest roles for Xin in the formation of cell-cell contacts and possibly in myofibrillogenesis.     

In vitro generation of differentiated cardiac myofibers on micropatterned laminin surfaces

Cardiac muscle fibers consist of highly aligned cardiomyocytes containing myofibrils oriented parallel to the fiber axis, and successive cardiomyocytes are interconnected at their ends through specialized junctional complexes (intercalated disks). Cell culture studies of cardiac myofibrils and intercalated disks are complicated by the fact that cardiomyocytes become extremely flattened and exhibit disorganized myofibrils and diffuse intercellular junctions with neighboring cells. In this study we sought to direct the organization of cultured cardiomyocytes to more closely resemble that found in vivo. Lanes of laminin 5-50 microm wide were microcontact-printed onto nonadhesive (BSA-coated) surfaces. Adherent cardiomyocytes responded to the spatial constraints by forming elongated, rod-shaped cells whose myofibrils aligned parallel to the laminin lanes. Patterned cardiomyocytes displayed a striking, bipolar localization of the junction molecules N-cadherin and connexin43 that ultrastructurally resembled intercalated disks. When laminin lanes were widely spaced, each lane of cardiomyocytes beat independently, but with narrow-spacing cells bridged between lanes, yielding aligned fields of synchronously beating cardiomyocytes. Similar cardiomyocyte patterns were achieved on the biodegradable polymer PLGA, suggesting that patterned cardiomyocytes could be used in myocardial tissue engineering. Such highly patterned cultures could be used in cell biology and physiology studies, which require accurate reproduction of native myocardial architecture.     

Pluripotent stem cell-derived cardiac tissue patch with advanced structure and function

Recent advances in pluripotent stem cell research have provided investigators with potent sources of cardiogenic cells. However, tissue engineering methodologies to assemble cardiac progenitors into aligned, 3-dimensional (3D) myocardial tissues capable of physiologically relevant electrical conduction and force generation are lacking. In this study, we introduced 3D cell alignment cues in a fibrin-based hydrogel matrix to engineer highly functional cardiac tissues from genetically purified mouse embryonic stem cell-derived cardiomyocytes (CMs) and cardiovascular progenitors (CVPs). Procedures for CM and CVP derivation, purification, and functional differentiation in monolayer cultures were first optimized to yield robust intercellular coupling and maximize velocity of action potential propagation. A versatile soft-lithography technique was then applied to reproducibly fabricate engineered cardiac tissues with controllable size and 3D architecture. While purified CMs assembled into a functional 3D syncytium only when supplemented with supporting non-myocytes, purified CVPs differentiated into cardiomyocytes, smooth muscle, and endothelial cells, and autonomously supported the formation of functional cardiac tissues. After a total culture time similar to period of mouse embryonic development (21 days), the engineered cardiac tissues exhibited unprecedented levels of 3D organization and functional differentiation characteristic of native neonatal myocardium, including: 1) dense, uniformly aligned, highly differentiated and electromechanically coupled cardiomyocytes, 2) rapid action potential conduction with velocities between 22 and 25 cm/s, and 3) significant contractile forces of up to 2 mN. These results represent an important advancement in stem cell-based cardiac tissue engineering and provide the foundation for exploiting the exciting progress in pluripotent stem cell research in the future tissue engineering therapies for heart disease.     

大鼠心肌细胞黏附分子N-cadherin表达的时空分布方式

目的 探讨大鼠心肌细胞发育过程中黏附分子N-cadherin的时空分布方式以及心肌细胞中N-cadherin表达的增龄变化规律。方法 应用SP免疫组织化学方法分别检测胎鼠、新生鼠、幼年、青年、中年和老年大鼠的心肌细胞黏附分子N-cadherin的表达，并使用HIPAS-1000图像分析仪进行定量分析。结果 细胞黏附分子N-cadherin在大鼠的心房、心室、乳头肌、室间隔等处均有表达。胎鼠心肌细胞中N-cadherin分散地分布于细胞表面和胞浆中，出生后到幼年时期逐渐向心肌细胞端-端的闰盘处集中，青年、中年和老年大鼠N-cadherin典型地分布在心肌细胞末端的闰盘处。图像分析表明：心室心肌细胞N-cadherin的表达随年龄变化而递增。结论 在大鼠心肌发育过程中，N-cadherin的表达存在增龄变化；以N-cadherin介导的细胞黏合连接与闰盘的发育有着密切的联系；黏合连接提供的细胞间机械偶联对于稳定细胞与细胞之间的联系有重要意义。     

Contractile cardiac grafts using a novel nanofibrous mesh

Cardiomyoctes are terminally differentiated cells and therefore unable to regenerate after infarction. The use of autologous bioengineered cardiac grafts has been suggested to replace infarcted myocardium and enhance cardiac function. Here we report the development of an in vitro system for engineered myocardium. Cardiac nanofibrous meshes (CNM) were developed by culturing cardiomyocytes from neonatal Lewis rats on electrospun, nanofibrous polycaprolactone (PCL) meshes. The mesh had an ECM-like topography and was suspended across a wire ring that acted as a passive load to contracting cardiomyocytes. The cardiomyocytes started beating after 3 days and were cultured in vitro for 14 days. The cardiomyocytes attached well on the PCL meshes and expressed cardiac-specific proteins such as alpha-myosin heavy chain, connexin43 and cardiac troponin I. The results demonstrate the formation of contractile cardiac grafts in vitro. Using this technique, cardiac grafts can be matured in vitro to obtain sufficient function prior to implantation. It is conjectured that cardiac grafts with clinically relevant dimensions can be obtained by stacking CNMs and inducing vascularization with angiogenic factors.     

人心肌细胞粘着斑蛋白α-catenin表达的增龄变化

目的　探讨在人心脏发育过程中心肌细胞粘着斑蛋白α catenin表达的增龄变化规律。方法　应用S P免疫组化方法分别对新生儿和成年人的心肌细胞α catenin的表达进行检测。结果　细胞粘着斑蛋白α catenin在心房、心室、乳头肌、室间隔等处的心肌细胞中均有表达。新生儿时期大量的α catenin呈斑块状聚集在心肌的端闰盘处 ,少量分布于心肌细胞的侧面连接处和胞浆中 ;成年人心肌细胞的α catenin典型地分布于细胞末端的闰盘处。结论　在人的心肌发育过程中 ,α catenin的表达分布存在增龄变化 ;α catenin的分布方式与闰盘的发育是一致的     

Priming of mesenchymal stem cells with oxytocin enhances the cardiac repair in ischemia/reperfusion injury

Oxytocin stimulates the cardiomyogenesis of embryonic stem cells and adult cardiac stem cells. We previously reported that oxytocin has a promigratory effect on umbilical cord blood-derived mesenchymal stem cells (UCB-MSCs). In this study, UCB-MSCs were cultured with oxytocin and examined for their therapeutic effect in an infarcted heart. UCB-MSCs were pretreated with 100 nM oxytocin and cardiac markers were assessed by immunofluorescence staining. Next, oxytocin-supplemented USC-MSCs (OT-USCs) were cocultured with hypoxia/reoxygenated neonatal rat cardiomyocytes and cardiac markers and dye transfer were then examined. For the in vivo study, ischemia/reperfusion was induced in rats, and phosphate-buffered saline (group 1), 1-day OT-USCs (group 2), or 7-day OT-USCs (group 3) were injected into the infarcted myocardium. Two weeks after injection, histological changes and cardiac function were examined. UCB-MSCs expressed connexin 43 (Cnx43), cardiac troponin I (cTnI), and α-sarcomeric actin (α-SA) after oxytocin supplementation and coculture with cardiomyocytes. Functional gap junction formation was greater in group 3 than in groups 1 and 2. Cardiac fibrosis and macrophage infiltration were lower in group 3 than in group 2. Restoration of Cnx43 expression was greater in group 3 than in group 2. Cnx43- and cTnI-positive OT-USCs in the peri-infarct zone were observed in group 2 and more frequently in group 3. The ejection fraction (EF) was increased in groups 2 and 3 in 2 weeks. The improved EF was sustained for 4 weeks only in group 3. Our findings suggest that the supplementation of UCB-MSCs with oxytocin can contribute to the cardiogenic potential for cardiac repair.     

大鼠心肌细胞和心肌细胞系H9C2表达弹性蛋白

目的 检测弹性蛋白在大鼠心肌细胞和H9C2心肌细胞系内的表达。 方法 取新生和成年SD大鼠各5例的新鲜心脏，冷冻切片；取20只新生3 d SD大鼠心脏，通过0.05%胰蛋白酶和0.075%Ⅱ型胶原酶消化法，获取原代心肌细胞；免疫组织化学和免疫荧光技术检测大鼠心肌组织、原代心肌细胞和H9C2心肌细胞系的弹性蛋白表达;ELISA法检测培养的H9C2心肌细胞系上清中的弹性蛋白。 结果 在大鼠心肌细胞、H9C2心肌细胞系和新生、成年大鼠心肌组织上均发现心肌肌钙蛋白T和弹性蛋白的共表达。免疫组织化学结果发现，弹性蛋白在成纤维细胞、平滑肌细胞和细胞间质内均有表达。H9C2心肌细胞培养液的上清中检测到少量的弹性蛋白。 结论 大鼠心肌细胞表达弹性蛋白，可能参与心肌细胞的势能和细胞间质弹性纤维的构建。     

The effect of cyclic stretch on maturation and 3D tissue formation of human embryonic stem cell-derived cardiomyocytes

The goal of cardiac tissue engineering is to restore function to the damaged myocardium with regenerative constructs. Human embryonic stem cell–derived cardiomyocytes (hESC-CMs) can produce viable, contractile, three-dimensional grafts that function in vivo. We sought to enhance the viability and functional maturation of cardiac tissue constructs by cyclical stretch. hESC-CMs seeded onto gelatin-based scaffolds underwent cyclical stretching. Histological analysis demonstrated a greater proportion of cardiac troponin T–expressing cells in stretched than non-stretched constructs, and flow sorting demonstrated a higher proportion of cardiomyocytes. Ultrastructural assessment showed that cells in stretched constructs had a more mature phenotype, characterized by greater cell elongation, increased gap junction expression, and better contractile elements. Real-time PCR revealed enhanced mRNA expression of genes associated with cardiac maturation as well as genes encoding cardiac ion channels. Calcium imaging confirmed that stretched constructs contracted more frequently, with shorter calcium cycle duration. Epicardial implantation of constructs onto ischemic rat hearts demonstrated the feasibility of this platform, with enhanced survival and engraftment of transplanted cells in the stretched constructs. This uniaxial stretching system may serve as a platform for the production of cardiac tissue-engineered constructs for translational applications.     

Cultivation in rotating bioreactors promotes maintenance of cardiac myocyte electrophysiology and molecular properties

We tested the hypothesis that cardiomyocytes maintained their phenotype better if cultured as three-dimensional tissue constructs than if cultured as confluent monolayers. Neonatal rat cardiomyocytes were cultured on biomaterial scaffolds in rotating bioreactors for 1 week, and resulting tissue constructs were compared with confluent monolayers and slices of native ventricular tissue with respect to proteins involved in cell metabolism (creatine kinase isoform MM), contractile function (sarcomeric myosin heavy chain), and intercellular communication (connexin 43), as well as action potential characteristics (e.g., membrane resting potential, maximum depolarization slope, and action potential duration), and macroscopic electrophysiological properties (maximum capture rate). The molecular and electrophysiological properties of cardiomyocytes cultured in tissue constructs, although inferior to those of native neonatal ventricles, were superior to those of the same cells cultured as monolayers. Construct levels of creatine kinase, myosin heavy chain, and connexin 43 were 40-60% as high as ventricle levels, whereas monolayer levels of the same proteins were only 11-20% as high. Construct action potential durations were 1.8-fold higher than those in ventricles, whereas monolayer action potential durations were 2.4-fold higher. Pharmacological studies using 4-aminopyridine showed that prolonged action potential duration and reduced maximum capture rate in tissue constructs as compared with native ventricles could be explained by decreased transient outward potassium current.     

Evidence for the expression of neonatal skeletal myosin heavy chain in primary myocardium and cardiac conduction tissue in the developing chick heart.

We isolated a neonatal skeletal myosin heavy chain (MHC) cDNA clone, CV11E1, from a cDNA library of embryonic chick ventricle. At early cardiogenesis, diffuse expression of neonatal skeletal MHC mRNA was first detected in the heart tube at stage 10. During subsequent embryonic stages, the expression of the mRNA in the atrium was upregulated until shortly after birth. It then diminished, dramatically, and disappeared in the adult. On the other hand, in the ventricle, only a trace of the expression was detected throughout embryonic life and in the adult. However, transient expression of mRNA in the ventricle was observed, post-hatching. At the protein level, during the embryonic stage, the atrial myocardium was stained diffusely with monoclonal antibody 2E9, specific for chick neonatal skeletal MHC, whereas the ventricles showed weak reactivity with 2E9. At the late embryonic and newly hatched stages, 2E9-positive cells were located clearly in the subendocardial layer, and around the blood vessels of the atrial and ventricular myocardium. These results provide the first evidence that the neonatal skeletal MHC gene is expressed in developing chick hearts. This MHC appears during early cardiogenesis and is then localized in cardiac conduction cells. Dev Dyn 2000;217:37-49.     

实验性病毒性心肌炎时穿孔素和连接蛋白43表达的相关性

目的：探讨病毒性心肌炎时穿孔素和心肌细胞缝隙连接蛋白43表达的关系。方法：应用免疫组织化学EnVision法对实验性病毒性心肌炎小鼠心肌组织中穿孔素、连接蛋白43的表达进行观察。结果：正常小鼠心肌中未见穿孔素阳性表达，连接蛋白43在心肌闰盘中呈阳性表达。心肌炎组织中部分浸润的炎细胞穿孔素呈阳性表达。在穿孔素阳性表达外，连接蛋白43表达明显减弱甚至阴性。结论：在病毒性心肌炎时穿孔素直接影响到连接蛋白43的正常表达，是引起连接蛋白43阴性表达及异常表达的主要因素之一。     

Biomimetic approach to cardiac tissue engineering: oxygen carriers and channeled scaffolds

We report that the functional assembly of engineered cardiac muscle can be enhanced by oxygen supply provided by mechanisms resembling those in normal vascularized tissues. To mimic the capillary network, cardiomyocytes and fibroblasts isolated from the neonatal rat hearts were cultured on a highly porous elastomer with a parallel array of channels that were perfused with culture medium. To mimic oxygen supply by hemoglobin, culture medium was supplemented with a perfluorocarbon (PFC) emulsion; constructs perfused with unsupplemented culture medium served as controls. In PFC-supplemented medium, the decrease in the partial pressure of oxygen in the aqueous phase was only 50% of that in control medium (28 mmHg vs. 45 mmHg between the construct inlet and outlet at a flow rate of 0.1 mL/min). Consistently, constructs cultivated in the presence of PFC contained higher amounts of DNA and cardiac markers (troponin I, connexin-43) and had significantly better contractile properties as compared to control constructs. In both groups, electron microscopy revealed open channels and the presence of cells at the channel surfaces as well as within constructs. Improved properties of cardiac constructs could be correlated with the enhanced supply of oxygen to the cells, by a combined use of channeled scaffolds and PFC.     

Cellular control of nitric oxide synthase expression and activity in rat cardiomyocytes

Potential ortho- and pathophysiological roles for nitric oxide synthases (NOS) in cardiac functions have been and are continuing to be described. However, cellular signaling mechanisms controlling nitric oxide (NO) production in the heart remain obscure. The aim of this study was to investigate signaling mechanisms involved in regulation of NOS expression and NO generation in cardiomyocytes. Using immunocytochemical methods in conjunction with western blotting, we have found that cultured neonatal rat cardiomyocytes express constitutively all three NOS isoforms targeted predominantly to the particulate component of cardiomyocytes - mitochondria and along contractile fibers, as well as along plasma membrane including T-tubules. Biochemical assay of NO generation has shown that exposure of cultured neonatal rat cardiac cells to isoproterenol (beta-adrenergic stimulation), iloprost [stable prostaglandin I(2) (PGI(2)) analogue], as well as inflammatory cytokines and dibutyryl adenosine-3',5'-monophosphate (db-cAMP), resulted in a marked up-regulation of NOS expression by cardiomyocytes. In db-cAMP-stimulated cells, inhibition of protein kinase A (PKA) and protein kinase C (PKC) reduced immunolabeling of NOS and concomitantly lowered NO production. Taken together, these data point to an involvement of beta-adrenergic mechanisms, cytokine and PGI(2) receptors, adenylyl cyclase, PKA, and PKC in the control of NO generation and expression of NOS in rat cardiomyocytes.