Therapeutic Cell Protective Role of Histochrome under Oxidative Stress in Human Cardiac Progenitor Cells.

Cardiac progenitor cells (CPCs) are resident stem cells present in a small portion of ischemic hearts and function in repairing the damaged heart tissue. Intense oxidative stress impairs cell metabolism thereby decreasing cell viability. Protecting CPCs from undergoing cellular apoptosis during oxidative stress is crucial in optimizing CPC-based therapy. Histochrome (sodium salt of echinochrome A-a common sea urchin pigment) is an antioxidant drug that has been clinically used as a pharmacologic agent for ischemia/reperfusion injury in Russia. However, the mechanistic effect of histochrome on CPCs has never been reported. We investigated the protective effect of histochrome pretreatment on human CPCs (hCPCs) against hydrogen peroxide (H2O2)-induced oxidative stress. Annexin V/7-aminoactinomycin D (7-AAD) assay revealed that histochrome-treated CPCs showed significant protective effects against H2O2-induced cell death. The anti-apoptotic proteins B-cell lymphoma 2 (Bcl-2) and Bcl-xL were significantly upregulated, whereas the pro-apoptotic proteins BCL2-associated X (Bax), H2O2-induced cleaved caspase-3, and the DNA damage marker, phosphorylated histone (γH2A.X) foci, were significantly downregulated upon histochrome treatment of hCPCs in vitro. Further, prolonged incubation with histochrome alleviated the replicative cellular senescence of hCPCs. In conclusion, we report the protective effect of histochrome against oxidative stress and present the use of a potent and bio-safe cell priming agent as a potential therapeutic strategy in patient-derived hCPCs to treat heart disease.

The Roots of Atractylodes macrocephala Koidzumi Enhanced Glucose and Lipid Metabolism in C2C12 Myotubes via Mitochondrial Regulation.

The root of Atractylodes macrocephala Koidzumi (Atractylodis Rhizoma Alba, ARA) is a Traditional Korean Medicine and has been commonly used for weight control. Mitochondrial dysfunction appears to be a key contributor to insulin resistance, and therefore mitochondrial targeting drugs represent an important potential strategy for the treatment of insulin resistance and obesity. In this study, the authors investigated the regulatory effects of ARA on mitochondrial function with respect to the stimulation of glucose and lipid metabolism in C2C12 myotubes. After differentiating C2C12 myotubes, cells were treated with or without different concentrations (0.2, 0.5, and 1.0 mg/mL) of ARA extract. ARA extract significantly increased the expression of peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor coactivator 1 alpha (PGC1α) and the downregulations of its targets, nuclear respiratory factor-1 (NRF-1), transcription factor A (TFAM), and total ATP content in C2C12 myotubes. ARA extract also increased the expressions of PGC1α activator and of the metabolic sensors, AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK), and acetyl-CoA carboxylase and sirtuin (SIRT) 1. Furthermore, it significantly increased glucose uptake by enhancing glucose consumption and subsequently decreased FFA contents and increased carnitine palmitoyltransferase (CPT) 1b expression. Our study indicates that ARA has a potential for stimulating mitochondrial function and energy metabolism in muscle.