Project description:YAP and TAZ are transcription cofactors implicated in the contractile and pro-fibrotic activation of fibroblasts. Fibroblast contractile function is important in alveologenesis, as well as in lung wound healing and fibrosis. As paralogs, YAP and TAZ may have independent or redundant roles in regulating transcriptional programs and contractile function. Using IMR-90 lung fibroblasts, microarray analysis and traction microscopy we tested whether independent YAP or TAZ knockdown alone was sufficient to limit transcriptional activation and contraction in vitro.
Project description:Here, we use a transcriptomic apprach to identify genes associated with variation in muscle contractile physiology differences among different muscles of the same individual.
Project description:Cardiac contractile strength is recognised as highly pH-sensitive, but less is known about the influence of pH on cardiac gene expression, which may be relevant during changes in myocardial metabolism or vascularization in development or disease. We sought evidence for pH-responsive cardiac genes and a context in which this has physiological relevance. pHLIP, a peptide-based reporter of acidity, revealed a non-uniform pH landscape in early-postnatal myocardium, dissipating in later life. pH-responsive differentially-expressed genes (pH-DEGs) were identified by transcriptomics of neonatal cardiomyocytes cultured over a range of pH. Enrichment analysis indicated “striated muscle contraction” as a pH-responsive biological process. Label-free proteomics verified fifty-four pH-responsive gene-products, including contractile elements and the adaptor protein CRIP2. Using transcriptional assays, acidity was found to inhibit p300/CBP acetylase activity and, as its functional readout, negatively affect myocardin, a co-activator of cardiac gene expression. In cultured myocytes, acid-inhibition of p300/CBP reduced H3K27 acetylation, as demonstrated by chromatin immunoprecipitation. H3K27ac levels were more strongly reduced at promoters of acid-downregulated DEGs, suggesting an epigenetic mechanism of pH-sensitive gene expression. By tandem cytoplasmic/nuclear pH imaging, the cardiac nucleus was found to exercise a degree of control over its pH through Na+/H+ exchangers at the nuclear envelope. Thus, we describe how extracellular pH signals gain access to the nucleus and regulate the expression of a subset of cardiac genes, notably those coding for contractile proteins and Crip2. Acting as a proxy of a well-perfused myocardium, alkaline conditions are permissive for expressing genes related to the contractile apparatus.
Project description:Impaired myocardial contractile function is a hallmark of heart failure (HF) which may present under resting conditions and/or during physiological stress. Previous studies reported that high fat feeding in HF is associated with improved myocardial contractile function at baseline. Our goal was to determine whether myocardial function is compromised in response to physiological stress and to evaluate the global gene expression profile of rats fed high dietary fat following infarction. Male Wistar rats underwent ligation or sham surgery and were fed normal (10% kcal fat) (SHAM+NC, HF+NC) or high fat (60% kcal saturated fat) (SHAM+SAT, HF+SAT) for 8 weeks. Myocardial contractile function was assessed using a Millar pressure-volume (PV) conductance catheter at baseline, during inferior vena caval occlusions and dobutamine (DOB) stress. Steady state indices of systolic function, left ventricular (LV)+dP/dtmax, stroke work and maximal power were increased in HF+SAT vs HF+NC; HF+NC were reduced vs SHAM+NC. Preload-recruitable measures of contractility [end systolic PV relationship, maximal elastance, preload recruitable SW and peak+dP/dtmax to end diastolic volume] were decreased in HF+NC but not HF+SAT. β-adrenergic responsiveness (delta-LV+dP/dtmax and delta-cardiac output DOB 0-10 µg•kg-1•min-1) was reduced in HF, but high fat feeding did not further impact contractile reserve in HF. Contractile reserve was reduced by high fat in SHAM+SAT. Microarray gene expression analysis reveals the majority of significantly altered pathways identified to contain multiple gene targets correspond to cell signaling pathways and energy metabolism. These findings suggest that high saturated fat improves myocardial function at rest and during physiological stress in infarcted hearts, but may negatively impact contractile reserve under non-pathological conditions. Furthermore, high fat feeding-induced alterations in gene expression related to energy metabolism and specific signaling pathways reveal promising targets through which high saturated fat potentially mediates cardioprotection in heart failure/LV dysfunction. Comparison of gene expression in heart failure or sham surgery hearts exposed to saturated or normal diets. Male Wistar rats (300-350g) were maintained on a reverse light-dark cycle and all procedures were done 3-6 hours into the dark phase cycle to synchronize with the normal active state of the rodents. Rats were randomly assigned to receive either a sham-operation (SH) or coronary ligation to induce cardiac dysfunction (HF). Heart failure was induced by ligating the left main coronary artery. Following surgery, rats were immediately fed either a normal rodent chow (NC) or a high saturated fat chow (SAT) with 60% caloric content derived from fat (25% palmitic, 33% stearic, 33% oleic acid, Research Diets).
Project description:Akt is a serine/threonine protein kinase that is activated by a variety of growth factors or cytokines in a PI3-kinase dependent manner. Using a conditional transgenic system in which Akt signaling can be turned on or off in the adult heart, we have recently demonstrated that short-term Akt activation induces a ‘physiological’ form of cardiac hypertrophy with enhanced coronary angiogenesis and maintained contractility. Here we tested the hypothesis that induction of physiological hypertrophy by short-term Akt activation might improve contractile function in failing hearts. When Akt signaling was transiently activated in murine hearts with impaired contractility induced by pressure overload or adriamycin treatment, contractile dysfunction was attenuated in both cases. Importantly, improvement of contractility was observed before the development of cardiac hypertrophy, indicating that Akt improves contractile dysfunction independently of its growth-promoting effects. To gain mechanistic insights into Akt-mediated positive inotropic effects, transcriptional profiles in the heart were determined in a pressure overload-induced heart failure model. Biological network analysis of differentially expressed transcripts revealed significant alterations in the expression of genes associated with cell death, and these alterations were reversed by short-term Akt activation. Thus, short-term Akt activation improves contractile dysfunction in failing hearts. This beneficial effect of Akt on contractility is hypertrophy-independent and may be mediated in part by inhibition of cell death associated with heart failure. Keywords: transgenic mice, Akt1, cardiac hypertrophy after ascending aortic constriction and contractile dysfunction, DNA microarrays
Project description:Impaired myocardial contractile function is a hallmark of heart failure (HF) which may present under resting conditions and/or during physiological stress. Previous studies reported that high fat feeding in HF is associated with improved myocardial contractile function at baseline. Our goal was to determine whether myocardial function is compromised in response to physiological stress and to evaluate the global gene expression profile of rats fed high dietary fat following infarction. Male Wistar rats underwent ligation or sham surgery and were fed normal (10% kcal fat) (SHAM+NC, HF+NC) or high fat (60% kcal saturated fat) (SHAM+SAT, HF+SAT) for 8 weeks. Myocardial contractile function was assessed using a Millar pressure-volume (PV) conductance catheter at baseline, during inferior vena caval occlusions and dobutamine (DOB) stress. Steady state indices of systolic function, left ventricular (LV)+dP/dtmax, stroke work and maximal power were increased in HF+SAT vs HF+NC; HF+NC were reduced vs SHAM+NC. Preload-recruitable measures of contractility [end systolic PV relationship, maximal elastance, preload recruitable SW and peak+dP/dtmax to end diastolic volume] were decreased in HF+NC but not HF+SAT. β-adrenergic responsiveness (delta-LV+dP/dtmax and delta-cardiac output DOB 0-10 µg•kg-1•min-1) was reduced in HF, but high fat feeding did not further impact contractile reserve in HF. Contractile reserve was reduced by high fat in SHAM+SAT. Microarray gene expression analysis reveals the majority of significantly altered pathways identified to contain multiple gene targets correspond to cell signaling pathways and energy metabolism. These findings suggest that high saturated fat improves myocardial function at rest and during physiological stress in infarcted hearts, but may negatively impact contractile reserve under non-pathological conditions. Furthermore, high fat feeding-induced alterations in gene expression related to energy metabolism and specific signaling pathways reveal promising targets through which high saturated fat potentially mediates cardioprotection in heart failure/LV dysfunction.
Project description:This experiment is part of the FunGenES project (FunGenES - Functional Genomics in Embryonic Stem Cells partially funded by the 6th Framework Programme of the EuropeanUnion, http://www.fungenes.org). The experiment was conducted at University of Cologne, Cologne, Germany. Goal of the experiment is a complete transcriptome profiling of contractile smooth muscle cells (SMCs) differentiated from embryonic stem cells which is crucial for the characterization of smooth muscle gene expression signatures and will contribute to defining biological and physiological processes in these cells. We have generated a transgenic embryonic stem cell line expressing both the puromycin acetyl transferase and enhanced green fluorescent protein cassettes under the control of the Acta2 promoter.This experiment allows the identification of specific biological and physiological processes in the contractile phenotype SMCs and will contribute to the understanding of these processes in early SMCs derived from embryonic stem cells.
Project description:Cardiac contractile strength is recognised as highly pH-sensitive, but less is known about the influence of pH on cardiac gene expression, which may be relevant during changes in myocardial metabolism or vascularization in development or disease. We sought evidence for pH-responsive cardiac genes and a context in which this has physiological relevance. pHLIP, a peptide-based reporter of acidity, revealed a non-uniform pH landscape in early-postnatal myocardium, dissipating in later life. pH-responsive differentially-expressed genes (pH-DEGs) were identified by transcriptomics of neonatal cardiomyocytes cultured over a range of pH. Enrichment analysis indicated “striated muscle contraction” as a pH-responsive biological process. Label-free proteomics verified fifty-four pH-responsive gene-products, including contractile elements and the adaptor protein CRIP2. Using transcriptional assays, acidity was found to inhibit p300/CBP acetylase activity and, as its functional readout, negatively affect myocardin, a co-activator of cardiac gene expression. In cultured myocytes, acid-inhibition of p300/CBP reduced H3K27 acetylation, as demonstrated by chromatin immunoprecipitation. H3K27ac levels were more strongly reduced at promoters of acid-downregulated DEGs, suggesting an epigenetic mechanism of pH-sensitive gene expression. By tandem cytoplasmic/nuclear pH imaging, the cardiac nucleus was found to exercise a degree of control over its pH through Na+/H+ exchangers at the nuclear envelope. Thus, we describe how extracellular pH signals gain access to the nucleus and regulate the expression of a subset of cardiac genes, notably those coding for contractile proteins and Crip2. Acting as a proxy of a well-perfused myocardium, alkaline conditions are permissive for expressing genes related to the contractile apparatus.