Photobiomodulation improves cell survival and death parameters in cardiomyocytes exposed to hypoxia/reoxygenation.

INTRODUCTION: Cardiovascular diseases are the leading cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide. Ischemic heart disease is one of the most harmful conditions to cellular structure and function. After reperfusion treatment, a spectrum of adverse effects becomes evident, encompassing altered cell viability, heightened oxidative stress, activated autophagy, and increased apoptosis. Photobiomodulation (PBM) has been utilized in experimental models of cardiac hypoxia to enhance mitochondrial response and ameliorate biochemical changes in injured tissue. However, the effects of PBM on cultured cardiomyocytes subjected to hypoxia/reoxygenation are not yet well established. METHOD: H9C2 cardiomyocytes were exposed to hypoxia with concentrations of 300 µM CoCl2 for 24 h, followed by 16 h of reoxygenation through incubation in a normoxic medium. Treatment was conducted using GaAIAs Laser (850 nm) after hypoxia at an intensity of 1 J/cm2. Cells were divided into three groups: Group CT (cells maintained under normoxic conditions), Group HR (cells maintained in hypoxia and reoxygenation conditions without treatment), Group HR + PBM (cells maintained in hypoxia and reoxygenation conditions that underwent PBM treatment). Cell viability was analyzed using MTT, and protein expression was assessed by western blot. One-way ANOVA with the Tukey post hoc test was used for data analysis. Differences were significant when p < 0.05. RESULTS: PBM at an intensity of 1 J/cm2 mitigated the alterations in cell survival caused by hypoxia/reoxygenation. Additionally, it significantly increased the expression of proteins Nrf2, HSP70, mTOR, LC3II, LC3II/I, and Caspase-9, while reducing the expression of PGC-1α, SOD2, xanthine oxidase, Beclin-1, LC3I, and Bax. CONCLUSION: PBM at intensities of 1 J/cm2 reverses the changes related to oxidative stress, mitochondrial biogenesis, autophagy, and apoptosis caused by hypoxia and reoxygenation in a culture of cardiomyocytes.

Effect of free and nanoemulsified ß-caryophyllene on monocrotaline-induced pulmonary arterial hypertension.

Pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) is characterized by increased pulmonary vascular resistance (PVR), right ventricular (RV) failure and premature death. Compounds with vasodilatory characteristics, such as ß-caryophyllene, could be promising therapeutics for PAH. This study aimed to determine the effects of free and nanoemulsified ß-caryophyllene in lung oxidative stress and heart function in PAH rats. Male Wistar rats (170 g, n = 6/group) were divided into four groups: control (CO), monocrotaline (MCT), monocrotaline + ß-caryophyllene (MCT-Bcar) and monocrotaline + nanoemulsion with ß-caryophyllene (MCT-Nano). PAH was induced by MCT (60 mg/kg i.p.), and 7 days later, treatment with ß-caryophyllene, either free or in a nanoemulsion (by gavage, 176 mg/kg/day) or vehicle was given for 14 days. Echocardiographic and hemodynamic measurements were performed, and after, the RV was collected for morphometry and the lungs for evaluation of oxidative stress, antioxidant enzymes, total sulfhydryl compounds, nitric oxide synthase (NOS) activity and endothelin-1 receptor expression. RV hypertrophy, increased PVR and RV systolic and diastolic pressures (RVSP and RVEDP, respectively) and increased mean pulmonary arterial pressure (mPAP) were observed in the MCT group. Treatment with both free and nanoemulsified ß-caryophyllene reduced RV hypertrophy, mPAP, RVSP and lipid peroxidation. The reduction in RVSP was more pronounced in the MCT-Nano group. Moreover, RVEDP decreased only in the MCT-Nano group. These treatments also increased superoxide dismutase, catalase and NOS activities and decreased endothelin-1 receptors expression. Both ß-caryophyllene formulations improved mPAP, PVR and oxidative stress parameters. However, ß-caryophyllene in a nanoemulsion was more effective in attenuating the effects of PAH.

Blueberry extract improves redox balance and functional parameters in the right ventricle from rats with pulmonary arterial hypertension.

PURPOSE: Pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) is a disease characterized by increased pulmonary vascular resistance and right ventricle (RV) failure. In this context, oxidative stress is an essential element contributing to PAH's pathophysiology. Thus, blueberry (BB), which has a high antioxidant capacity, emerges as a natural therapeutic approach in PAH. This work evaluated the effect of BB extract on redox balance in RV in a PAH's animal model. METHODS: Male Wistar rats (200 ± 20 g) (n = 72) were randomized into eight groups: control (CTR); monocrotaline (MCT); CTR and MCT treated at doses of 50, 100, and 200 mg/kg BB. PAH was induced by administration of MCT (60 mg/kg, intraperitoneal). Rats were treated with BB orally for 5 weeks (2 weeks before monocrotaline and 3 weeks after monocrotaline injection). On day 35, rats were submitted to echocardiography and catheterization, then euthanasia and RV harvesting for biochemical analyses. RESULTS: RV hypertrophy, observed in the MCT groups, was reduced with BB treatment. MCT elevated RV systolic pressure and pressure/time derivatives, while the intervention with BB decreased these parameters. PAH decreased RV output and pulmonary artery outflow acceleration/ejection time ratio, while increased RV diameters, parameters restored by BB treatment. Animals from the MCT group showed elevated lipid peroxidation and NADPH oxidase activity, outcomes attenuated in animals treated with BB, which also led to increased catalase activity. CONCLUSION: Treatment with BB partially mitigated PAH, which could be associated with improvement of RV redox state. Such findings constitute an advance in the investigation of the role of BB extract in chronic progressive cardiovascular diseases that involve the redox balance, such as PAH.

The brief methylprednisolone administration is crucial to mitigate cardiac dysfunction after myocardial infarction.

Acute myocardial infarction (AMI) is one of the major causes of heart failure and mortality. Glucocorticoids administration post-infarction has long been proposed, but it has shown conflicting results so far. This controversy may be associated with the glucocorticoid type and the period when it is administered. To elucidate these, the present aims to evaluate if the brief methylprednisolone acetate administration is determinant for heart adaptation after AMI. Male Wistar rats were divided into 3 groups: sham-operated (SHAM); infarcted (AMI); infarcted treated with methylprednisolone acetate (AMI+M). Immediately after surgery, the AMI+M group received a single dose of methylprednisolone acetate (40 mg/kg i.m.). After 56 days, the cardiac function was assessed and lungs, liver and heart were collected to determine rates of hypertrophy and congestion. Heart was used for oxidative stress and metalloproteinase activity analyses. Methylprednisolone acetate attenuated matrix metalloproteinase-2 activity, cardiac dilatation, and prevented the onset of pulmonary congestion, as well as avoided cardiac hypertrophy. Our data indicate that administration of methylprednisolone acetate shortly after AMI may be a therapeutic alternative for attenuation of detrimental ventricular remodeling.

Oral delivery of ambrisentan-loaded lipid-core nanocapsules as a novel approach for the treatment of pulmonary arterial hypertension.

Ambrisentan (AMB) is an orphan drug approved for oral administration that has been developed for the treatment of pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH), a chronic and progressive pathophysiological state that might result in death if left untreated. Lipid-core nanocapsules (LNCs) are versatile nanoformulations capable of loading lipophilic drugs for topical, vaginal, oral, intravenous, pulmonary, and nasal administration. Our hypothesis was to load AMB into these nanocapsules (LNCamb) and test their effect on slowing or reducing the progression of monocrotaline-induced PAH in a rat model, upon oral administration. LNCamb displayed a unimodal distribution of diameters (around 200 nm), negative zeta potential (-11.5 mV), high encapsulation efficiency (78%), spherical shape, and sustained drug release (50-60% in 24 h). The in vivo pharmacodynamic effect of the LNCamb group was evaluated by observing the echocardiography, hemodynamic, morphometric, and histological data, which showed a significant decrease in PAH in this group, as compared to the control group (AMBsolution). LNCamb showed the benefit of reversing systolic dysfunction and preventing vascular remodeling with greater efficacy than that observed in the control group. The originality and contribution of our work reveal the promising value of this nanoformulation as a novel therapeutic strategy for PAH treatment.

The progression of pulmonary arterial hypertension induced by monocrotaline is characterized by lung nitrosative and oxidative stress, and impaired pulmonary artery reactivity.

The time-course of pulmonary arterial hypertension in the monocrotaline (MCT) model was investigated. Male rats were divided into two groups: MCT (received a 60 mg/kg i.p. injection) and control (received saline). The MCT and control groups were further divided into three cohorts, based on the follow-up interval: 1, 2, and 3 weeks. Right ventricle (RV) catheterization was performed and RV hypertrophy (RVH) was estimated. The lungs were used for biochemical, histological, molecular, and immunohistochemical analysis, while pulmonary artery rings were used for vascular reactivity. MCT promoted lung perivascular edema, inflammatory cells exudation, greater neutrophils and lymphocytes profile, and arteriolar wall thickness, compared to CTR group. Increases in pulmonary artery pressure and in RVH were observed in the MCT 2- and 3-week groups. The first week was marked by the presence of nitrosative stress (50% moderate and 33% accentuated staining by nitrotyrosine). These alterations lead to an adaptation of NO production by NO synthase activity after 2 weeks. Oxidative stress was evident in the third week, probably by an imbalance between endothelin-1 receptors, resulting in extracellular matrix remodeling, endothelial dysfunction, and RVH. Also, it was found a reduced pulmonary arterial vasodilatory response to acetylcholine after 2 (55%) and 3 (45%) weeks in MCT groups. The relevance of this study is precisely to show that nitrosative and oxidative stress predominate in distinct time windows of the disease progression.

Blueberry extract decreases oxidative stress and improves functional parameters in lungs from rats with pulmonary arterial hypertension.

OBJECTIVES: Pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) is a condition characterized by an increased resistance of pulmonary vasculature, culminating in an increase in pulmonary pressure. This process involves disturbances in lung redox homeostasis, causing progressive right heart failure. In this context, the use of natural antioxidants, such as those found in blueberries, may represent a therapeutic approach. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of blueberry extract (BB) on functional parameters and oxidative stress levels in rat lungs with induced PAH. METHODS: Forty-eight male Wistar rats (weighing 200 ± 20 g) were randomized into five groups: control, monocrotaline, monocrotaline + BB 50, monocrotaline + BB 100, and monocrotaline + BB 200. PAH was induced by the administration of monocrotaline (60 mg/kg, intraperitoneal). Rats were treated with BB at doses of 50, 100, and 200 mg/kg via gavage for 5 wk (2 wk before monocrotaline and 3 wk after monocrotaline injection). At day 35, rats were submitted to echocardiography and catheterization. They were then sacrificed and lungs were harvested for biochemical analyses. RESULTS: BB increased the E/A ratio of blood flow across the tricuspid valve and tricuspid annular phase systolic excursion, as wells as decreased the mean pulmonary artery pressure of animals compared with the PAH group. Moreover, BB decreased total reactive species concentration and lipid oxidation, reduced activity of nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate oxidase and expression of xanthine oxidase, increased the activity of superoxide dismutase and restored sulfhydryl content in the animal lungs compared with those in the PAH group. Additionally, BB restored expression of the antioxidant transcriptional factor Nrf2 in the lungs of the animal subjects. Finally, BB normalized the endothelin receptor (ETA/ETB) expression ratio in the animal lungs, which were increased in the PAH group. CONCLUSION: Intervention with BB mitigated functional PAH outcomes through improvement of the pulmonary redox state. Our results provide a basis for future research on natural antioxidant interventions as a novel treatment strategy in PAH.