miR-132/212 Impairs Cardiomyocytes Contractility in the Failing Heart by Suppressing SERCA2a.

Compromised cardiac function is a hallmark for heart failure, mostly appearing as decreased contractile capacity due to dysregulated calcium handling. Unfortunately, the underlying mechanism causing impaired calcium handling is still not fully understood. Previously the miR-132/212 family was identified as a regulator of cardiac function in the failing mouse heart, and pharmaceutically inhibition of miR-132 is beneficial for heart failure. In this study, we further investigated the molecular mechanisms of miR-132/212 in modulating cardiomyocyte contractility in the context of the pathological progression of heart failure. We found that upregulated miR-132/212 expressions in all examined hypertrophic heart failure mice models. The overexpression of miR-132/212 prolongs calcium decay in isolated neonatal rat cardiomyocytes, whereas cardiomyocytes isolated from miR-132/212 KO mice display enhanced contractility in comparison to wild type controls. In response to chronic pressure-overload, miR-132/212 KO mice exhibited a blunted deterioration of cardiac function. Using a combination of biochemical approaches and in vitro assays, we confirmed that miR-132/212 regulates SERCA2a by targeting the 3'-end untranslated region of SERCA2a. Additionally, we also confirmed PTEN as a direct target of miR-132/212 and potentially participates in the cardiac response to miR132/212. In end-stage heart failure patients, miR-132/212 is upregulated and correlates with reduced SERCA2a expression. The up-regulation of miR-132/212 in heart failure impairs cardiac contractile function by targeting SERCA2a, suggesting that pharmaceutical inhibition of miR-132/212 might be a promising therapeutic approach to promote cardiac function in heart failure patients.

Loss of miR-132/212 Has No Long-Term Beneficial Effect on Cardiac Function After Permanent Coronary Occlusion in Mice.

Background: Myocardial infarction (MI) is caused by occlusion of the coronary artery and induces ischemia in the myocardium and eventually a massive loss in cardiomyocytes. Studies have shown many factors or treatments that can affect the healing and remodeling of the heart upon infarction, leading to better cardiac performance and clinical outcome. Previously, miR-132/212 has been shown to play an important role in arteriogenesis in a mouse model of hindlimb ischemia and in the regulation of cardiac contractility in hypertrophic cardiomyopathy in mice. In this study, we explored the role of miR-132/212 during ischemia in a murine MI model. Methods and Results: miR-132/212 knockout mice show enhanced cardiac contractile function at baseline compared to wild-type controls, as assessed by echocardiography. One day after induction of MI by permanent occlusion, miR-132/212 knockout mice display similar levels of cardiac damage as wild-type controls, as demonstrated by infarction size quantification and LDH release, although a trend toward more cardiomyocyte cell death was observed in the knockout mice as shown by TUNEL staining. Four weeks after MI, miR-132/212 knockout mice show no differences in terms of cardiac function, expression of cardiac stress markers, and fibrotic remodeling, although vascularization was reduced. In line with these in vivo observation, overexpression of miR-132 or miR-212 in neonatal rat cardiomyocyte suppress hypoxia induced cardiomyocyte cell death. Conclusion: Although we previously observed a role in collateral formation and myocardial contractility, the absence of miR-132/212 did not affect the overall myocardial performance upon a permanent occlusion of the coronary artery. This suggests an interplay of different roles of this miR-132/212 before and during MI, including an inhibitory effect on cell death and angiogenesis, and a positive effect on cardiac contractility and autophagic response. Thus, spatial or tissue specific manipulation of this microRNA family may be essential to fully understand the roles and to develop interventions to reduce infarct size.

Anti-fibrotic Effects of Cardiac Progenitor Cells in a 3D-Model of Human Cardiac Fibrosis.

Cardiac fibroblasts play a key role in chronic heart failure. The conversion from cardiac fibroblast to myofibroblast as a result of cardiac injury, will lead to excessive matrix deposition and a perpetuation of pro-fibrotic signaling. Cardiac cell therapy for chronic heart failure may be able to target fibroblast behavior in a paracrine fashion. However, no reliable human fibrotic tissue model exists to evaluate this potential effect of cardiac cell therapy. Using a gelatin methacryloyl hydrogel and human fetal cardiac fibroblasts (hfCF), we created a 3D in vitro model of human cardiac fibrosis. This model was used to study the possibility to modulate cellular fibrotic responses. Our approach demonstrated paracrine inhibitory effects of cardiac progenitor cells (CPC) on both cardiac fibroblast activation and collagen synthesis in vitro and revealed that continuous cross-talk between hfCF and CPC seems to be indispensable for the observed anti-fibrotic effect.

Cardiac Progenitor Cell-Derived Extracellular Vesicles Reduce Infarct Size and Associate with Increased Cardiovascular Cell Proliferation.

Cell transplantation studies have shown that injection of progenitor cells can improve cardiac function after myocardial infarction (MI). Transplantation of human cardiac progenitor cells (hCPCs) results in an increased ejection fraction, but survival and integration are low. Therefore, paracrine factors including extracellular vesicles (EVs) are likely to contribute to the beneficial effects. We investigated the contribution of EVs by transplanting hCPCs with reduced EV secretion. Interestingly, these hCPCs were unable to reduce infarct size post-MI. Moreover, injection of hCPC-EVs did significantly reduce infarct size. Analysis of EV uptake showed cardiomyocytes and endothelial cells primarily positive and a higher Ki67 expression in these cell types. Yes-associated protein (YAP), a proliferation marker associated with Ki67, was also increased in the entire infarcted area. In summary, our data suggest that EV secretion is the driving force behind the short-term beneficial effect of hCPC transplantation on cardiac recovery after MI.

Modeling the Human Scarred Heart In Vitro: Toward New Tissue Engineered Models.

Cardiac remodeling is critical for effective tissue healing, however, excessive production and deposition of extracellular matrix components contribute to scarring and failing of the heart. Despite the fact that novel therapies have emerged, there are still no lifelong solutions for this problem. An urgent need exists to improve the understanding of adverse cardiac remodeling in order to develop new therapeutic interventions that will prevent, reverse, or regenerate the fibrotic changes in the failing heart. With recent advances in both disease biology and cardiac tissue engineering, the translation of fundamental laboratory research toward the treatment of chronic heart failure patients becomes a more realistic option. Here, the current understanding of cardiac fibrosis and the great potential of tissue engineering are presented. Approaches using hydrogel-based tissue engineered heart constructs are discussed to contemplate key challenges for modeling tissue engineered cardiac fibrosis and to provide a future outlook for preclinical and clinical applications.

Targeting chronic cardiac remodeling with cardiac progenitor cells in a murine model of ischemia/reperfusion injury.

BACKGROUND: Translational failure for cardiovascular disease is a substantial problem involving both high research costs and an ongoing lack of novel treatment modalities. Despite the progress already made, cell therapy for chronic heart failure in the clinical setting is still hampered by poor translation. We used a murine model of chronic ischemia/reperfusion injury to examine the effect of minimally invasive application of cardiac progenitor cells (CPC) in cardiac remodeling and to improve clinical translation. METHODS: 28 days after the induction of I/R injury, mice were randomized to receive either CPC (0.5 million) or vehicle by echo-guided intra-myocardial injection. To determine retention, CPC were localized in vivo by bioluminescence imaging (BLI) two days after injection. Cardiac function was assessed by 3D echocardiography and speckle tracking analysis to quantify left ventricular geometry and regional myocardial deformation. RESULTS: BLI demonstrated successful injection of CPC (18/23), which were mainly located along the needle track in the anterior/septal wall. Although CPC treatment did not result in overall restoration of cardiac function, a relative preservation of the left ventricular end-diastolic volume was observed at 4 weeks follow-up compared to vehicle control (+5.3 ± 2.1 µl vs. +10.8 ± 1.5 µl). This difference was reflected in an increased strain rate (+16%) in CPC treated mice. CONCLUSIONS: CPC transplantation can be adequately studied in chronic cardiac remodeling using this study set-up and by that provide a translatable murine model facilitating advances in research for new therapeutic approaches to ultimately improve therapy for chronic heart failure.

Engineered 3D Cardiac Fibrotic Tissue to Study Fibrotic Remodeling.

Activation of cardiac fibroblasts into myofibroblasts is considered to play an essential role in cardiac remodeling and fibrosis. A limiting factor in studying this process is the spontaneous activation of cardiac fibroblasts when cultured on two-dimensional (2D) culture plates. In this study, a simplified three-dimensional (3D) hydrogel platform of contractile cardiac tissue, stimulated by transforming growth factor-ß1 (TGF-ß1), is presented to recapitulate a fibrogenic microenvironment. It is hypothesized that the quiescent state of cardiac fibroblasts can be maintained by mimicking the mechanical stiffness of native heart tissue. To test this hypothesis, a 3D cell culture model consisting of cardiomyocytes and cardiac fibroblasts encapsulated within a mechanically engineered gelatin methacryloyl hydrogel, is developed. The study shows that cardiac fibroblasts maintain their quiescent phenotype in mechanically tuned hydrogels. Additionally, treatment with a beta-adrenergic agonist increases beating frequency, demonstrating physiologic-like behavior of the heart constructs. Subsequently, quiescent cardiac fibroblasts within the constructs are activated by the exogenous addition of TGF-ß1. The expression of fibrotic protein markers (and the functional changes in mechanical stiffness) in the fibrotic-like tissues are analyzed to validate the model. Overall, this 3D engineered culture model of contractile cardiac tissue enables controlled activation of cardiac fibroblasts, demonstrating the usability of this platform to study fibrotic remodeling.

Exosomes from Cardiomyocyte Progenitor Cells and Mesenchymal Stem Cells Stimulate Angiogenesis Via EMMPRIN.

To date, cellular transplantation therapy has not yet fulfilled its high expectations for cardiac repair. A major limiting factor is lack of long-term engraftment of the transplanted cells. Interestingly, transplanted cells can positively affect their environment via secreted paracrine factors, among which are extracellular vesicles, including exosomes: small bi-lipid-layered vesicles containing proteins, mRNAs, and miRNAs. An exosome-based therapy will therefore relay a plethora of effects, without some of the limiting factors of cell therapy. Since cardiomyocyte progenitor cells (CMPC) and mesenchymal stem cells (MSC) induce vessel formation and are frequently investigated for cardiac-related therapies, the pro-angiogenic properties of CMPC and MSC-derived exosome-like vesicles are investigated. Both cell types secrete exosome-like vesicles, which are efficiently taken up by endothelial cells. Endothelial cell migration and vessel formation are stimulated by these exosomes in in vitro models, mediated via ERK/Akt-signaling. Additionally, these exosomes stimulated blood vessel formation into matrigel plugs. Analysis of pro-angiogenic factors revealed high levels of extracellular matrix metalloproteinase inducer (EMMPRIN). Knockdown of EMMPRIN on CMPCs leads to a diminished pro-angiogenic effect, both in vitro and in vivo. Therefore, CMPC and MSC exosomes have powerful pro-angiogenic effects, and this effect is largely mediated via the presence of EMMPRIN on exosomes.

Circulating Extracellular Vesicles Contain miRNAs and are Released as Early Biomarkers for Cardiac Injury.

Plasma-circulating microRNAs have been implicated as novel early biomarkers for myocardial infarction (MI) due to their high specificity for cardiac injury. For swift clinical translation of this potential biomarker, it is important to understand their temporal and spatial characteristics upon MI. Therefore, we studied the temporal release, potential source, and transportation of circulating miRNAs in different models of ischemia reperfusion (I/R) injury. We demonstrated that extracellular vesicles are released from the ischemic myocardium upon I/R injury. Moreover, we provided evidence that cardiac and muscle-specific miRNAs are transported by extracellular vesicles and are rapidly detectable in plasma. Since these vesicles are enriched for the released miRNAs and their detection precedes traditional damage markers, they hold great potential as specific early biomarkers for MI.

Microvesicles and exosomes for intracardiac communication.

The heart is an organ with a complex mixture of well-organized interactions of different cell types that facilitate proper myocardial contractility, sufficient perfusion, balanced myocardial extracellular stiffness, and controlled functioning of the immune system. Several cell types, including cardiomyocytes, endothelial cells, smooth muscle cells, fibroblasts, immune cells, and cardiac-derived stem cells, need a well-controlled communication system to use the complex orchestra of signalling molecules. The intercellular communication includes direct cell-cell contact, cell-matrix interaction, long-range signals, and electrical and extracellular chemical molecules. In addition to the extracellular molecules that cells can use to influence their environment, more and more attention is focused on the release of extracellular membrane vesicles by cells. These vesicles were always thought to be cell debris derivatives, but it appeared that these vesicles are used for horizontal transfer of information between cells, containing proteins, peptides, several classes of RNA molecules, and sometimes DNA. The main populations of released vesicles are classified on their (intra)cellular origin and include apoptotic bodies, microvesicles, and exosomes. Here, we provide an overview on the role of vesicles in cardiac communication and their use as potential therapeutics and biomarkers.