Metformin attenuates pressure overload-induced cardiac hypertrophy via AMPK activation.

AIM: To identify the role of metformin in cardiac hypertrophy and investigate the possible mechanism underlying this effect. METHODS: Wild type and AMPKα2 knockout (AMPKα2⁻/⁻) littermates were subjected to left ventricular pressure overload caused by transverse aortic constriction. After administration of metformin (200 mg·kg⁻¹·d⁻¹) for 6 weeks, the degree of cardiac hypertrophy was evaluated using echocardiography and anatomic and histological methods. The antihypertrophic mechanism of metformin was analyzed using Western blotting. RESULTS: Metformin significantly attenuated cardiac hypertrophy induced by pressure overload in wild type mice, but the antihypertrophic actions of metformin were ablated in AMPKα2⁻/⁻ mice. Furthermore, metformin suppressed the phosphorylation of Akt/protein kinase B (AKT) and mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) in response to pressure overload in wild type mice, but not in AMPKα2⁻/⁻ mice. CONCLUSION: Long-term administration of metformin may attenuate cardiac hypertrophy induced by pressure overload in nondiabetic mice, and this attenuation is highly dependent on AMPK activation. These findings may provide a potential therapy for patients at risk of developing pathological cardiac hypertrophy.

Molecular mechanisms in microRNA-mediated TRB3 gene and hypertension left ventricular hypertrophy.

The present study investigated the relationship between microRNA-mediated TRB3 gene and hypertension left ventricular hypertrophy at the molecular level. Polymorphic site in TRB3 gene was identified by direct PCR method, and the correlation between the SNP site and ventricular hypertrophy was determined. MicroRNAs target gene sequence interacting on the TRB3 polymorphic site was screened by bioinformatics, and the effect of microRNAs on the TRB3 polymorphic site was finally verified by luciferase test. Two polymorphic sites rs6186912 and rs6186923 were found in the TRB3 gene, and the direct relationship between rs6186923 polymorphic site and the hypertension left ventricular hypertrophy in patients with myocardial hypertrophy was compared and analyzed. Pictar software was used to analyze the effect of miR-100 on rs6186923, and the argumentation was verified by luciferase test. In conclusion, the study showed that the TRB3 gene polymorphism rs6186923 was able to affect the TRB3 gene by affecting the binding of miR-100, which indirectly caused the formation of hypertension left ventricular hypertrophy.