scholarly journals The Role of Nrf2-Mediated Pathway in Cardiac Remodeling and Heart Failure

2014 ◽  
Vol 2014 ◽  
pp. 1-16 ◽  
Author(s):  
Shanshan Zhou ◽  
Wanqing Sun ◽  
Zhiguo Zhang ◽  
Yang Zheng

Heart failure (HF) is frequently the consequence of sustained, abnormal neurohormonal, and mechanical stress and remains a leading cause of death worldwide. The key pathophysiological process leading to HF is cardiac remodeling, a term referring to maladaptation to cardiac stress at the molecular, cellular, tissue, and organ levels. HF and many of the conditions that predispose one to HF are associated with oxidative stress. Increased generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) in the heart can directly lead to increased necrosis and apoptosis of cardiomyocytes which subsequently induce cardiac remodeling and dysfunction. Nuclear factor-erythroid-2- (NF-E2-) related factor 2 (Nrf2) is a transcription factor that controls the basal and inducible expression of a battery of antioxidant genes and other cytoprotective phase II detoxifying enzymes that are ubiquitously expressed in the cardiovascular system. Emerging evidence has revealed that Nrf2 and its target genes are critical regulators of cardiovascular homeostasis via the suppression of oxidative stress, which is the key player in the development and progression of HF. The purpose of this review is to summarize evidence that activation of Nrf2 enhances endogenous antioxidant defenses and counteracts oxidative stress-associated cardiac remodeling and HF.

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Liang Xiong ◽  
Jinyu Huang ◽  
Ying Gao ◽  
Yanfang Gao ◽  
Chunmei Wu ◽  
...  

Abstract Arsenic (As) is a ubiquitous environmental and industrial toxin with known correlates of oxidative stress and cognitive deficits in the brain. Nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor 2 (Nrf2) is a transcriptional factor that represents a central cellular antioxidant defense mechanism and transcribes many antioxidant genes. Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-gamma (PPARγ) is a well-known nuclear receptor to regulate lipid metabolism in many tissues, and it has been also associated with the control of oxidative stress, neuronal death, neurogenesis and differentiation. The role of Nrf2 and PPARγ in As-induced neurotoxicity is still debated. The present study was designed to investigate the neurobehavioral toxic effect of sub-chronic and middle-dose sodium arsenite exposure in mice hippocampus, as well as the response of Nrf2/PPARγ expression and influence on protein expression levels of their downstream antioxidant genes. Our results showed that mice treated with intraperitoneal injection of sodium arsenite (50 mg/kg body wt.) twice a week for 7 weeks resulted in increased generation of reactive oxygen species and impairment of spatial cognitive function. The present study also found a positive association between Nrf2/PPARγ expression in hippocampus of mice, and activation of antioxidant defenses by the evidently upregulated expression of their downstream genes, including superoxide dismutase, heme oxygenase-1 and glutathione peroxidase-3. Therefore, our findings were helpful for further understanding the role of Nrf2/PPARγ feedback loop in As-induced neurobehavioral toxicity.


Circulation ◽  
2007 ◽  
Vol 116 (suppl_16) ◽  
Author(s):  
Shungo Hikoso ◽  
Kinya Otsu ◽  
Osamu Yamaguchi ◽  
Toshihiro Takeda ◽  
Masayuki Taniike ◽  
...  

Objectives: We have previously reported that NF-κB contributes to GPCR agonist-induced hypertrophy in cultured cardiomyocytes. However, the in vivo role of this pathway in the pathogenesis of cardiac remodeling remains to be elucidated. Although IκB kinase β (IKKβ)/NF-κB pathway is a major negative regulator of cell death, it can sensitize cells to death-inducing stimuli in some instances, thus it can be either anti- or pro-apoptotic. In this study, we aimed to clarify the role of IKKβ/NF-κB signaling in cardiac remodeling using cardiac-specific IKKβ deficient mice. Methods and Results: We crossed mice bearing an IKK β flox allele with mice expressing the Cre recombinase under the control of the myosin light chain 2v promoter ( MLC2v-Cre +/− ) to generate IKK β flox/flox ; MLC2v-Cre +/− mice (conditional knockout:CKO). Then, CKO mice (n=14) and control littermates bearing IKK β flox/flox (CTRL, n=14) were subjected to pressure overload by means of transverse aortic constriction (TAC). EMSA analysis revealed NF-κB DNA binding activity after TAC had attenuated in CKO hearts. One week after TAC, echocardiography showed significantly lower left ventricular fractional shortening (26.9±2.7% vs. 41.4±0.9%, p<0.01), and higher left ventricular end-diastolic dimension (4.02±0.14 mm vs. 3.47±0.08 mm, p<0.01) and lung weight/body weight ratio (11.1±1.4 vs. 5.5±0.1, p<0.01) in CKO mice compared with CTRL mice, indicating the development of heart failure in CKO mice. Number of apoptotic cells had increased in CKO hearts after TAC, suggesting that the enhanced apoptosis is a cause for heart failure. The expression levels of MnSOD mRNA and protein after TAC, which is one of NF-κB target genes, were significantly lower in CKO than those in CTRL mice. As a consequence, oxidative stress and JNK activation in CKO hearts after TAC had significantly increased compared with those in CTRL heart, suggesting that increased oxidative stress and enhanced JNK activity resulted in cardiomyocyte apoptosis in CKO hearts. Conclusion: These results show that IKKβ/NF-κB pathway in cardiomyocyte plays a protective role mediated through attenuation of oxidative stress and JNK activation in response to pressure overload.


2014 ◽  
Vol 34 (2) ◽  
pp. 145-152 ◽  
Author(s):  
B Shen ◽  
W Wang ◽  
L Ding ◽  
Y Sao ◽  
Y Huang ◽  
...  

Aim: This study aimed to determine whether nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor 2 antagonized the oxidative stress induced by di- N-butylphthalate (DBP) in testicular Leydig cells. Methods: Mouse TM3 testicular Leydig cells were treated with Nrf2 knockdown (KD) or overexpression in the presence and absence of DBP. Oxidative profiles were examined. Nrf2 target antioxidant genes were studied, and the effects of Nrf2 inducer sulphoraphane (SFN) were tested. Results: DBP induced intracellular oxidative stress to a similar extent with Nrf2 KD. Expression and protein levels of Nrf2 were increased together with its target genes, namely heme oxygenase 1, nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate quinone oxidoreductase 1 and peroxiredoxin 6, following DBP stimulation. Use of SFN not only restored the intracellular oxidative toxicity but also cell proliferation and testosterone secretion in response to DBP. Conclusion: Increased Nrf2 activity, for example, by SFN can effectively antagonize the oxidative stress in testicular Leydig cells caused by DBP.


Genes ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (10) ◽  
pp. 1118 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hao Xu ◽  
Yu Jiang ◽  
Sheng Li ◽  
Lang Xie ◽  
Yi-Xi Tao ◽  
...  

Oxidation resistance gene 1 (OXR1) is essential for protection against oxidative stress in mammals, but its functions in non-mammalian vertebrates, especially in fish, remain uncertain. Here, we created a homozygous oxr1a-knockout zebrafish via the CRISPR/Cas9 (Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats/CRISPR associated protein 9) system. Compared with wild-type (WT) zebrafish, oxr1a−/− mutants exhibited higher mortality and more apoptotic cells under oxidative stress, and multiple antioxidant genes (i.e., gpx1b, gpx4a, gpx7 and sod3a) involved in detoxifying cellular reactive oxygen species were downregulated significantly. Based on these observations, we conducted a comparative transcriptome analysis of early oxidative stress response. The results show that oxr1a mutation caused more extensive changes in transcriptional networks compared to WT zebrafish, and several stress response and pro-inflammatory pathways in oxr1a−/− mutant zebrafish were strongly induced. More importantly, we only observed the activation of the p53 signaling and apoptosis pathway in oxr1a−/− mutant zebrafish, revealing an important role of oxr1a in regulating apoptosis via the p53 signaling pathway. Additionally, we found that oxr1a mutation displayed a shortened lifespan and premature ovarian failure in prolonged observation, which may be caused by the loss of oxr1a impaired antioxidant defenses, thereby increasing pro-apoptotic events. Altogether, our findings demonstrate that oxr1a is vital for antioxidant defenses and anti-aging in zebrafish.


2011 ◽  
Vol 300 (4) ◽  
pp. H1133-H1140 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zoltan Ungvari ◽  
Lora Bailey-Downs ◽  
Tripti Gautam ◽  
Rosario Jimenez ◽  
Gyorgy Losonczy ◽  
...  

Hyperglycemia in diabetes mellitus promotes oxidative stress in endothelial cells, which contributes to development of cardiovascular diseases. Nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor-2 (Nrf2) is a transcription factor activated by oxidative stress that regulates expression of numerous reactive oxygen species (ROS) detoxifying and antioxidant genes. This study was designed to elucidate the homeostatic role of adaptive induction of Nrf2-driven free radical detoxification mechanisms in endothelial protection under diabetic conditions. Using a Nrf2/antioxidant response element (ARE)-driven luciferase reporter gene assay we found that in a cultured coronary arterial endothelial cell model hyperglycemia (10–30 mmol/l glucose) significantly increases transcriptional activity of Nrf2 and upregulates the expression of the Nrf2 target genes NQO1, GCLC, and HMOX1. These effects of high glucose were significantly attenuated by small interfering RNA (siRNA) downregulation of Nrf2 or overexpression of Keap-1, which inactivates Nrf2. High-glucose-induced upregulation of NQO1, GCLC, and HMOX1 was also prevented by pretreatment with polyethylene glycol (PEG)-catalase or N-acetylcysteine, whereas administration of H2O2 mimicked the effect of high glucose. To test the effects of metabolic stress in vivo, Nrf2+/+ and Nrf2−/− mice were fed a high-fat diet (HFD). HFD elicited significant increases in mRNA expression of Gclc and Hmox1 in aortas of Nrf2+/+ mice, but not Nrf2−/− mice, compared with respective standard diet-fed control mice. Additionally, HFD-induced increases in vascular ROS levels were significantly greater in Nrf2−/− than Nrf2+/+ mice. HFD-induced endothelial dysfunction was more severe in Nrf2−/− mice, as shown by the significantly diminished acetylcholine-induced relaxation of aorta of these animals compared with HFD-fed Nrf2+/+ mice. Our results suggest that adaptive activation of the Nrf2/ARE pathway confers endothelial protection under diabetic conditions.


2020 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
pp. 124-129
Author(s):  
Evirosa Juliartha Simanjuntak ◽  
Zulham Zulham

Superoxide dismutase (SOD) is an endogenous antioxidant that works by regulating ROS levels. This group of enzymes functions to catalyze the efficient disposal of superoxide anions. Superoxide anions are produced enzymatically and non-enzymatically. In mammals there are 3 types of SOD, namely SOD1 (CuZnSOD), SOD2 (MnSOD), SOD3 (ECSOD). Oxidative stress caused by free radicals has been reported to be involved in several diseases. Various stressors trigger ROS production, also triggering the production of enzymatic antioxidants such as catalase (CAT), hydroperoxidase (HPx) and superoxide dismutase (SOD). Free radicals cause oxidative stress when the amount in the body is excessive, this situation will cause oxidative damage at the cellular, tissue to organ levels that will accelerate the aging process and the onset of disease. Free radicals are molecules that have one or more unpaired electrons and are therefore relatively unstable. Free radicals try to stabilize themselves by taking electrons from other molecules and will produce reactive oxygen species (ROS). If there is a disturbance in the balance of ROS products with antioxidants, oxidative stress will occur which results in damage to cell components. The higher levels of oxidative stress will increase the lipid peroxidation marker which is presented as malondialdehyde (MDA) and decrease the SOD enzyme activity. Thus the role of molecules that have antioxidant activity is very necessary to ward off oxidative stress.


2006 ◽  
Vol 80 (7) ◽  
pp. 3273-3284 ◽  
Author(s):  
Wenan Qiang ◽  
Xianghong Kuang ◽  
Jinrong Liu ◽  
Na Liu ◽  
Virginia L. Scofield ◽  
...  

ABSTRACT The ts1 mutant of Moloney murine leukemia virus (MoMuLV) induces a neurodegenerative disease in mice, in which glial cells are infected by the retrovirus but neurons are not. ts1 infection of primary astrocytes, or of the immortalized astrocytic cell line C1, results in accumulation of the ts1 gPr80 env envelope protein in the endoplasmic reticulum (ER), with ER and oxidative stress. Notably, only about half of the infected astrocytes die in these cultures, while the other half survive, continue to proliferate, and continue to produce virus. To determine how these astrocytes survive ts1 infection in culture, we established a chronically infected subline of the living cells remaining after the death of all acutely infected cells in an infected C1 cell culture (C1-ts1-S). We report here that C1-ts1-S cells proliferate more slowly, produce less virus, show reduced H2O2 levels, increase their uptake of cystine, and maintain higher levels of intracellular GSH and cysteine compared to acutely infected or uninfected C1 cells. C1-ts1-S cells also upregulate their thiol antioxidant defenses by activation of the transcription factor NF-E2-related factor 2 (Nrf2) and its target genes. Interestingly, despite maintenance of higher levels of intracellular reduced thiols, C1-ts1-S cells are more sensitive to cystine deprivation than uninfected C1 cells. We conclude that some ts1-infected astrocytes survive and adapt to virus-induced oxidative stress by successfully mobilizing their thiol redox defenses.


2011 ◽  
Vol 301 (2) ◽  
pp. H363-H372 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zoltan Ungvari ◽  
Lora Bailey-Downs ◽  
Danuta Sosnowska ◽  
Tripti Gautam ◽  
Peter Koncz ◽  
...  

There is strong evidence showing that aging is associated with vascular oxidative stress, which has been causally linked to the development of cardiovascular diseases. NF-E2-related factor-2 (Nrf2) is a transcription factor, which is activated by reactive oxygen species in the vasculature of young animals leading to the upregulation of various antioxidant genes. The present study was designed to elucidate age-related changes in the homeostatic role of Nrf2-driven free radical detoxification mechanisms in the vasculature. We found that in the aorta of Fischer 344 × Brown Norway rats, aging results in a progressive increase in O2·− production, and downregulates protein and mRNA expression of Nrf2, which is associated with a decreased nuclear Nrf2 activity and a decrease in the Nrf2 target genes NAD(P)H:quinone oxidoreductase 1, γ-glutamylcysteine synthetase, and heme oxygenase-1. There was an inverse relationship between vascular expression of Nrf2 target genes and age-related increases in the expression of the NF-κB target genes ICAM-1 and IL-6, which was significant by regression analysis. In cultured aorta segments of young (3 mo old) rats treatment with H2O2 and high glucose significantly increases nuclear translocation of Nrf2 and upregulates the expression of Nrf2 target genes. In contrast, in cultured aorta segments of aged (24 mo old) rats, the induction of Nrf2-dependent responses by H2O2 and high glucose are blunted. High glucose-induced vascular oxidative stress was more severe in aortas of aged rats, as shown by the significantly increased H2O2 production in these vessels, compared with responses obtained in aortas from young rats. Moreover, we found that aging progressively increases vascular sensitivity to the proapoptotic effects of H2O2 and high glucose treatments. Taken together, aging is associated with Nrf2 dysfunction in the vasculature, which likely exacerbates age-related cellular oxidative stress and increases sensitivity of aged vessels to oxidative stress-induced cellular damage.


2015 ◽  
Vol 225 (3) ◽  
pp. R83-R99 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bo Chen ◽  
Yanrong Lu ◽  
Younan Chen ◽  
Jingqiu Cheng

Endothelial dysfunction is an important risk factor for cardiovascular disease, and it represents the initial step in the pathogenesis of atherosclerosis. Failure to protect against oxidative stress-induced cellular damage accounts for endothelial dysfunction in the majority of pathophysiological conditions. Numerous antioxidant pathways are involved in cellular redox homeostasis, among which the nuclear factor-E2-related factor 2 (Nrf2)/Kelch-like ECH-associated protein 1 (Keap1)–antioxidant response element (ARE) signaling pathway is perhaps the most prominent. Nrf2, a transcription factor with a high sensitivity to oxidative stress, binds to AREs in the nucleus and promotes the transcription of a wide variety of antioxidant genes. Nrf2 is located in the cytoskeleton, adjacent to Keap1. Keap1 acts as an adapter for cullin 3/ring-box 1-mediated ubiquitination and degradation of Nrf2, which decreases the activity of Nrf2 under physiological conditions. Oxidative stress causes Nrf2 to dissociate from Keap1 and to subsequently translocate into the nucleus, which results in its binding to ARE and the transcription of downstream target genes. Experimental evidence has established that Nrf2-driven free radical detoxification pathways are important endogenous homeostatic mechanisms that are associated with vasoprotection in the setting of aging, atherosclerosis, hypertension, ischemia, and cardiovascular diseases. The aim of the present review is to briefly summarize the mechanisms that regulate the Nrf2/Keap1–ARE signaling pathway and the latest advances in understanding how Nrf2 protects against oxidative stress-induced endothelial injuries. Further studies regarding the precise mechanisms by which Nrf2-regulated endothelial protection occurs are necessary for determining whether Nrf2 can serve as a therapeutic target in the treatment of cardiovascular diseases.


2020 ◽  
Vol 18 (3) ◽  
pp. 260-265
Author(s):  
Xu Lin ◽  
Zheng Xiaojun ◽  
Lv Heng ◽  
Mo Yipeng ◽  
Tong Hong

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the protective effect of swertiamarin on heart failure. To this end, a rat model of heart failure was established via left coronary artery ligation. Infarct size of heart tissues was determined using triphenyl tetrazolium chloride staining. Echocardiography was performed to evaluate cardiac function by the determination of ejection fraction, left ventricular internal dimension in diastole and left ventricular internal dimension in systole. The effect of swertiamarin on oxidative stress was evaluated via enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. The mechanism was evaluated using western blot. Administration of swertiamarin reduced the infarct size of heart tissues in rat models with heart failure. Moreover, swertiamarin treatment ameliorated the cardiac function, increased ejection fraction and fractional shortening, decreased left ventricular internal dimension in diastole and left ventricular internal dimension in systole. Swertiamarin improved oxidative stress with reduced malondialdehyde, while increased superoxide dismutase, glutathione, and GSH peroxidase. Furthermore, nuclear-factor erythroid 2-related factor 2, heme oxygenase and NAD(P)H dehydrogenase (quinone 1) were elevated by swertiamarin treatment in heart tissues of rat model with heart failure. Swertiamarin alleviated heart failure through suppression of oxidative stress response via nuclear-factor erythroid 2-related factor 2/heme oxygenase-1 pathway providing a novel therapeutic strategy for heart failure.


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