2,3-butanedione monoxime unmasks Ca(2+)-induced NADH formation and inhibits electron transport in rat hearts.

We used 2,3-butanedione monoxime (BDM) to suppress work by the perfused rat heart and to investigate the effects of calcium on NADH production and tissue energetics. Hearts were perfused with buffer containing BDM and elevated perfusate calcium to maintain the rates of cardiac work and oxygen consumption at levels similar to those of control perfused hearts. BDM plus calcium hearts displayed higher levels of NADH surface fluorescence, indicating calcium activation of mitochondrial dehydrogenases. These hearts, however, displayed 20% lower phosphocreatine levels. BDM suppressed the rates of state 3 respiration of isolated mitochondria. Uncoupled respiration was suppressed to a lesser degree, and the state 4 respiration rates were not affected. Double-inhibitor experiments with liver mitochondria using BDM and carboxyatractyloside (CAT) were used to identify the site of inhibition. BDM at low levels (0-5 mM) suppressed respiration. In the presence of CAT at levels that inhibit respiration by 60%, low levels of BDM were without effect. Because these effects were not additive, BDM does not inhibit adenine nucleotide transport. This was supported by an assay of adenine nucleotide transport in liver mitochondria. BDM did not inhibit ATP hydrolysis by submitochondrial particles but strongly suppressed reversed electron transport from succinate to NAD(+). Oxidation of NADH by submitochondrial particles was inhibited by BDM but oxidation of succinate was not. We conclude that BDM inhibits electron transport at site 1.

Measurement of mitochondrial membrane potential using fluorescent rhodamine derivatives.

We investigated the use of rhodamine 123 (R123), tetramethylrhodamine methyl ester (TMRM), and tetramethylrhodamine ethyl ester (TMRE) as fluorescent probes to monitor the membrane potential of mitochondria. These indicator dyes are lipophilic cations accumulated by mitochondria in proportion to DeltaPsi. Upon accumulation, all three dyes exhibit a red shift in both their absorption and fluorescence emission spectra. The fluorescence intensity is quenched when the dyes are accumulated by mitochondria. These properties have been used to develop a method to dynamically monitor DeltaPsi of isolated rat heart mitochondria using a ratio fluorescence approach. All three dyes bound to the inner and outer aspects of the inner mitochondrial membrane and, as a result, were accumulated by mitochondria in a greater quantity than predicted by the Nernst equation. Binding to mitochondria was temperature-dependent and the degree of binding was in the order of TMRE > R123 > TMRM. The internal and external partition coefficients for binding were determined to correct for binding in the calculation of DeltaPsi. All three dyes suppressed mitochondrial respiratory control to some extent. Inhibition of respiration was greatest with TMRE, followed by R123 and TMRM. When used at low concentrations, TMRM did not suppress respiration. The use of these dyes and ratio fluorescence techniques affords a simple method for measurement of DeltaPsi of isolated mitochondria. We also applied this approach to the isolated perfused heart to determine whether DeltaPsi could be monitored in an intact tissue. Wavelength scanning of the surface fluorescence of the heart under various conditions after accumulation of TMRM indicated that the mitochondrial matrix-induced wavelength shift of TMRM also occurs in the heart cytosol, eliminating the use of this approach in the intact heart.

Ratiometric methodology for NAD(P)H measurement in the perfused rat heart using surface fluorescence.

The surface fluorescence of the isolated perfused rat heart has been evaluated for the purpose of NAD(P)H quantitation. With the use of excitation at 340, 380, 415, and 430 nm with emission detection at 500 +/- 20 nm, the intensities at 340 and 380 nm excitation were found to be linearly related during NAD(P)H oxidation/reduction induced by changes in substrate availability. Changes in cardiac NAD(P)H caused similar changes at 340 and 380 nm excitation, but those at 340 nm were of greater magnitude. Isolated cardiac mitochondria exhibited essentially identical optical properties during changes in NAD(P)H content induced by changes in substrate availability and by NAD(H) oxidation/reduction caused by coupled phosphorylation of ADP. The changes in redox status of both isolated mitochondria and the intact perfused heart can be expressed by a 340/380 excitation fluorescence ratio because of these relationships. This value assumed a minimum and maximum value under conditions of complete oxidation and reduction, respectively. Use of this ratio in the perfused heart avoids the artifacts caused by cardiac motion and tissue stretch. Removal of motion artifacts with an excitation ratio could only be accomplished if the measurements at 340 and 380 nm were estimated at the same point in the cardiac cycle. A method of cardiac waveform reconstruction and signal averaging is described to obtain these data from sequential measurements. With these techniques, the reduction of cardiac NAD(P)H can be expressed as a percentage of the range obtained between minimum and maximum reduction. The described technique is of general utility in the assessment of cardiac bioenergetics.

Quantitation of myoglobin saturation in the perfused heart using myoglobin as an optical inner filter.

Quantitation of metabolic parameters using the technique of cardiac surface fluorescence is complicated by motion and changes in tissue absorption. Because ratio fluorescence methodology can be applied to eliminate motion-induced errors, in the current study, we used a ratio fluorescence technique to evaluate myoglobin saturation in the perfused rat heart, since myoglobin is the major oxygen-dependent light absorbing species in this tissue. Changes in myoglobin saturation can affect surface fluorescence measurements as a result of the inner filter effect. Optical scans of heart extracts indicated the major absorption peak is due to myoglobin and its peak wavelength shifts from 415 to 430 nm upon deoxygenation. To monitor this shift in hearts, the isolated perfused heart was loaded covalently with the fluorescent dye 7-diethylaminocoumarin-3-carboxylic acid by brief perfusion with the succinimidyl ester. This dye has an excitation maximum in the region of maximal absorption by myoglobin and allows for monitoring myoglobin oxygenation using the inner filter effect. The dye localized to endothelial cells and increased the surface fluorescence in this wavelength region approximately 50-fold above background levels without affecting cardiac function. An equation was derived to estimate the fraction of myoglobin in the oxygenated state from changes in the fluorescence 415/430 excitation ratio. From this fraction, the average PO2 in the environment of myoglobin was estimated under several perfusion conditions. We report that retrograde perfusion in the Langendorff mode at either 60 or 120 mmHg pressure resulted in full oxygenation of myoglobin with use of cell-free perfusate equilibrated with 95% O2.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Regulation of cardiac mitochondrial calcium by average extramitochondrial calcium.

A system to perifuse isolated rat heart mitochondria was designed to study the relationship between mitochondrial matrix free Ca2+ and extramitochondrial free Ca2+ under conditions in which the latter concentration could oscillate over a range typical of that expected in vivo. We tested the hypothesis that the level of intramitochondrial Ca2+ responds to the average extramitochondrial Ca2+ in the heart. Mitochondria were immobilized within an optical chamber for measurement of endogenous NAD(P)H and fura 2 fluorescence. NAD(P)H increased significantly on provision of substrates and decreased reversibly in the presence of ADP, indicating maintenance intact coupled respiration by this preparation. Matrix free Ca2+ was measured using fura 2-loaded mitochondria and, in parallel experiments, media free Ca2+ was measured with fura 2 in the absence of mitochondria. Oscillation of extramitochondrial Ca2+ from < 0.1 microM to approximately 2 microM at frequencies of 0.5, 1.0, and 1.25 cycles/s produced steady-state levels of matrix Ca2+ that were independent of frequency but proportional to the average media free Ca2+ concentration. Matrix Ca2+ increased to a steady state on an increase in the extramitochondrial average Ca2+ concentration with a half-time (t1/2) of approximately 2 min at 22 degrees C. Oscillation of mitochondrial Ca2+ was not observed under any conditions tested. The data are taken to indicate that in vivo, the concentration of mitochondrial matrix free Ca2+ is a steady state that is proportional to the average extramitochondrial Ca2+ concentration and that changes in the latter represent a mechanism of signal transduction from the cytosol to the mitochondrial matrix.

Cysteine oxidation by the postischemic rat kidney.

Renal levels of glutathione are markedly decreased during periods of renal ischemia due to catabolism to cysteine. We previously demonstrated that cysteine accumulates in the tissue as the thiol during ischemia, and resumption of blood flow causes a transient elevation of cysteine levels in the renal venous effluent and return of tissue cysteine levels to control values. In this study, the oxidation state of renal venous cyst(e)ine was determined. Although cysteine accumulated as the reduced thiol during ischemia, cysteine released into the renal vein upon blood reflow was found to be almost entirely in the disulfide form. To distinguish between oxidation of arterial cysteine and renal cysteine formed from ischemia-induced reduced glutathione (GSH) catabolism, a labeling procedure was developed to label kidney GSH with 35S without significant labeling of arterial plasma cyst(e)ine. With this procedure, the source of oxidized cysteine that appeared in the renal venous plasma after ischemia was identified as resulting from renal GSH catabolism. The data indicate that a rapid oxidative process occurs during the initial period of blood reflow to the postischemic kidney. After 35 min of ischemia, 3 mumol cysteine/g dry wt were released from the kidney and oxidized. Cysteine oxidation is also expected to generate oxygen-centered free radicals. Pretreatment of animals with deferoxamine, a iron chelator, was without effect on the relative amount of venous cysteine in the oxidized form, arguing against a role for free iron in this oxidative process.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Glutathione catabolism by the ischemic rat kidney.

The glutathione (GSH) content of rat kidney decreases after cessation of blood flow, falling to 40% of control levels 35 min after renal artery occlusion [R. C. Scaduto, Jr., V. H. Gattone II, L. W. Grotyohann, J. Wertz, and L. F. Martin. Am. J. Physiol. 255 (Renal Fluid Electrolyte Physiol. 24): F911-F921, 1988]. Renal GSH levels remained depressed for at least 2 h after resumption of blood flow. Because GSH functions in the removal of free radicals, and lipid peroxidation is a free radical-initiated process that occurs in the ischemic kidney, we investigated the fate of this GSH pool in the ischemic kidney. Using high-performance liquid chromatography to measure thiols, we found the loss of GSH to be associated with a stoichiometric accumulation of cysteine in the kidney. Moreover, preischemic labeling of the renal GSH pool with 35S led to accumulation of [35S]cysteine during ischemia that had the same specific activity as that of tissue GSH. Formation of cysteine during ischemia was suppressed in rats pretreated with acivicin, an inhibitor of gamma-glutamyltransferase (gamma-GT), although the degree of suppression was small in comparison to the extent of gamma-GT inhibition. During the initial 2 min of blood reflow after ischemia, tissue cysteine returned to control levels, and a transient increase in the cysteine content of renal venous blood was observed. After ischemia, renal GSH levels remained depressed, but postischemic GSH levels could be increased by administration of N-acetylcysteine during the ischemic period.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

The effect of glutathione content on renal function following warm ischemia.

Reperfusion after ischemia produces tissue injury due to free radicals generated during the reflow period. Glutathione (GSH) mediates against this oxidant damage by scavenging free radicals and protecting cells against injury. In an attempt to reduce the injury caused by free radicals, rat kidneys were pretreated with GSH monoethyl ester to elevate renal GSH fivefold. Previous studies in a renal artery occlusion model showed that pretreated kidneys in comparison to untreated controls were functionally impaired as measured by glomerular filtration rate, urine flow rate, and histology. To eliminate systemic effects of the pretreatment, kidneys were subjected to a fixed period of warm ischemia but flushed of blood and transplanted into nonpretreated syngeneic recipients. As before, pretreated kidneys exhibited marked functional impairment. We conclude that (i) elevation of renal GSH with GSH monoethyl ester enhances rather than prevents renal dysfunction and (ii) the enhancement of renal ischemic injury following pretreatment is not due to nonspecific systemic effects of GSH monoethyl ester pretreatment.

Effect of an altered glutathione content on renal ischemic injury.

Renal ischemia and reperfusion have been shown to be associated with an enhanced renal lipid peroxidation. Because glutathione (GSH) serves to protect cells from oxidative stress, the role of GSH in renal ischemia was investigated. The content of renal GSH in the rat declined to 40% of control values during 35 min of renal artery occlusion. Renal GSH levels only partially recovered after 120 min of blood reflow. To assess the significance of this effect, renal GSH levels were altered before occlusion of the renal artery. Rats were treated with either buthionine sulfoximine (BSO) or glutathione monoethylester (GSH-ester) to lower or elevate, respectively, renal GSH levels. The ischemia-induced changes in renal ATP, ADP, and AMP after 35 min of ischemia and 90 min of blood reflow were not affected by prior alteration of renal GSH levels. The ischemia-induced decrease in the respiratory control of isolated cortex mitochondria was also unaffected. In control animals, ischemia of 35 min increased urine flow rate 3.2-fold and decreased GFR to 29% of normal values during the reflow period. Similar changes occurred in kidneys with a depleted GSH level. In kidneys with an elevated GSH, however, both urine flow rate and GFR were decreased to values 50 and 3% of normal, respectively. Morphological analysis demonstrated that ischemia produced an enhanced degree of damage with an increase in cast formation in kidneys pretreated with GSH-ester; however, the ester also produced morphological changes in nonischemic kidneys. The severity of ischemic damage was similar in kidneys with a lower GSH content when compared with controls. We conclude that renal GSH is depleted by ischemia but depletion of renal GSH with BSO before ischemia has no effect on ischemic-induced damage to the kidney. However, ischemic-induced renal dysfunction is enhanced when GSH is elevated with glutathione monoethylester before ischemia.

Role of glycolytic products in damage to ischemic myocardium. Dissociation of adenosine triphosphate levels and recovery of function of reperfused ischemic hearts.

The mechanism of irreversible damage to ischemic myocardium was investigated in the perfused rat heart. The time of transition from reversible to irreversible damage to contractile function was accelerated by accumulation of glycolytic products and increases in extracellular calcium. Both of these effects were largely independent of adenine nucleotide levels in the tissue. With zero coronary flow and 1.25 mM calcium the decrease in ability of the heart to recover ventricular function with reperfusion after 30 minutes of ischemia was directly correlated with accumulation of glycolytic products (as estimated by tissue lactate) during ischemia. The extent of lactate accumulation during ischemia was varied by preperfusing the hearts for 0, 10, or 15 minutes under anoxic, high coronary flow conditions to deplete tissue glycogen prior to ischemia, and by adding lactate back to the perfusate of these hearts during the ischemic period. Recovery of ventricular function was inversely related to tissue lactate during ischemia and varied from 28 to 92%, even though there was little or no change in tissue levels of residual adenosine triphosphate. Increasing extracellular calcium accelerated the time of onset of irreversible damage with little or no change in residual adenosine triphosphate levels. At any given calcium concentration, the time-dependent declines in the ability of the heart to recover ventricular function was also largely independent of adenosine triphosphate levels. These studies suggest a major role of anaerobic glycolytic products (lactate, hydrogen ion, or NADH) in ischemic damage to the heart that is unrelated to loss of tissue adenine nucleotides. With zero or low flow ischemia, this effect may result in irreversible damage to the myocardium before adenine nucleotides are reduced to critically low levels.

Coenzyme A and carnitine distribution in normal and ischemic hearts.

The distribution of coenzyme A and carnitine between the mitochondrial and cytosolic compartments was determined in rat heart ventricular muscle. The CoA and carnitine levels of homogenate, mitochondrial, and postmitochondrial fractions were determined in nonperfused hearts and in hearts that were perfused under control and ischemic conditions. Using the mitochondrial marker enzymes, citrate synthase and cytochrome c oxidase, the cellular content of mitochondrial protein was determined to be 53 +/- 1.0 (nonperfused), 53.5 +/- 1.5 (control), and 58.1 +/- 2.2 (ischemic) mg/g of wet heart muscle. These values were used to calculate the contribution of the CoA and carnitine located in the mitochondrial compartment to the total cellular levels of CoA and carnitine. Under both control and ischemic conditions, approximately 95% of the cellular CoA was mitochondrial. The percentage of the total cellular carnitine associated with the mitochondria increased from 8 to 9% in nonperfused and control hearts to 25% during ischemia, indicating that a net transfer of carnitine occurred from the cytosol to the mitochondrial matrix.