Endothelin-1 impairs coronary arteriolar dilation: Role of p38 kinase-mediated superoxide production from NADPH oxidase. Academic Article uri icon

abstract

  • Elevated levels of endothelin-1 (ET-1), a potent vasoactive peptide, are implicated as a risk factor for cardiovascular diseases by exerting vasoconstriction. The aim of this study was to address whether ET-1, at sub-vasomotor concentrations, elicits adverse effects on coronary microvascular function. Porcine coronary arterioles (50-100m) were isolated, cannulated and pressurized without flow for in vitro study. Diameter changes were recorded using a videomicrometer. Arterioles developed basal tone (603m) and dilated to the endothelium-dependent nitric oxide (NO)-mediated vasodilators serotonin (1nmol/L to 0.1mol/L) and adenosine (1nmol/L to 10mol/L). Treating the vessels with a clinically relevant sub-vasomotor concentration of ET-1 (10pmol/L, 60min) significantly attenuated arteriolar dilations to adenosine and serotonin but not to endothelium-independent vasodilator sodium nitroprusside. The arteriolar wall contains ETA receptors and the adverse effect of ET-1 was prevented by ETA receptor antagonist BQ123, the superoxide scavenger Tempol, the NADPH oxidase inhibitors apocynin and VAS2870, the NOX2-based NADPH oxidase inhibitor gp91 ds-tat, or the p38 kinase inhibitor SB203580. However, ETB receptor antagonist BQ788, H2O2 scavenger catalase, scrambled gp91 ds-tat, or inhibitors of xanthine oxidase (allopurinol), PKC (G 6983), Rho kinase (Y27632), and c-Jun N-terminal kinase (SP600125) did not protect the vessel. Immunohistochemical staining showed that ET-1 elicited Tempol-, apocynin- and SB203580-sensitive superoxide productions in the arteriolar wall. Our results indicate that exposure of coronary arterioles to a pathophysiological, sub-vasomotor concentration of ET-1 leads to vascular dysfunction by impairing endothelium-dependent NO-mediated dilation via p38 kinase-mediated production of superoxide from NADPH oxidase following ETA receptor activation.

published proceedings

  • J Mol Cell Cardiol

altmetric score

  • 0.25

author list (cited authors)

  • Thengchaisri, N., Hein, T. W., Ren, Y. i., & Kuo, L.

citation count

  • 21

complete list of authors

  • Thengchaisri, Naris||Hein, Travis W||Ren, Yi||Kuo, Lih

publication date

  • January 2015