Use of Human Induced Pluripotent Stem Cell-Derived Cardiomyocytes (hiPSC-CMs) to Monitor Compound Effects on Cardiac Myocyte Signaling Pathways.

There is a need to develop mechanism-based assays to better inform risk of cardiotoxicity. Human induced pluripotent stem cell-derived cardiomyocytes (hiPSC-CMs) are rapidly gaining acceptance as a biologically relevant in vitro model for use in drug discovery and cardiotoxicity screens. Utilization of hiPSC-CMs for mechanistic investigations would benefit from confirmation of the expression and activity of cellular pathways that are known to regulate cardiac myocyte viability and function. This unit describes an approach to demonstrate the presence and function of signaling pathways in hiPSC-CMs and the effects of treatments on these pathways. We present a workflow that employs protocols to demonstrate protein expression and functional integrity of signaling pathway(s) of interest and to characterize biological consequences of signaling modulation. These protocols utilize a unique combination of structural, functional, and biochemical endpoints to interrogate compound effects on cardiomyocytes.

Examining the protective role of ErbB2 modulation in human-induced pluripotent stem cell-derived cardiomyocytes.

Human-induced pluripotent stem cell-derived cardiomyocytes (hiPSC-CMs) are being used as an in vitro model system in cardiac biology and in drug discovery (e.g., cardiotoxicity testing). Qualification of these cells for use in mechanistic investigations will require detailed evaluations of cardiomyocyte signaling pathways and cellular responses. ErbB signaling and the ligand neuregulin play critical roles in survival and functional integrity of cardiac myocytes. As such, we sought to characterize the expression and activity of the ErbB family of receptors. Antibody microarray analysis performed on cell lysates derived from maturing hiPSC-CMs detected expression of ∼570 signaling proteins. EGFR/ErbB1, HER2/ErbB2, and ErbB4, but not ErbB3 receptors, of the epidermal growth factor receptor family were confirmed by Western blot. Activation of ErbB signaling by neuregulin-1ß (NRG, a natural ligand for ErbB4) and its modulation by trastuzumab (a monoclonal anti-ErbB2 antibody) and lapatinib (a small molecule ErbB2 tyrosine kinase inhibitor) were evaluated through assessing phosphorylation of AKT and Erk1/2, two major downstream kinases of ErbB signaling, using nanofluidic proteomic immunoassay. Downregulation of ErbB2 expression by siRNA silencing attenuated NRG-induced AKT and Erk1/2 phosphorylation. Activation of ErbB signaling with NRG, or inhibition with trastuzumab, alleviated or aggravated doxorubicin-induced cardiomyocyte damage, respectively, as assessed by a real-time cellular impedance analysis and ATP measurement. Collectively, these results support the expanded use of hiPSC-CMs to examine mechanisms of cardiotoxicity and support the value of using these cells in early assessments of cardiotoxicity or efficacy.