Premium
H9c2 cardiac myoblasts undergo apoptosis in a model of ischemia consisting of serum deprivation and hypoxia: inhibition by PMA
Author(s) -
Bonavita Francesca,
Stefanelli Claudio,
Giordano Emanuele,
Columbaro Marta,
Facchini Annalisa,
Bonafè Francesca,
Caldarera Claudio Marcello,
Guarnieri Carlo
Publication year - 2003
Publication title -
febs letters
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.593
H-Index - 257
eISSN - 1873-3468
pISSN - 0014-5793
DOI - 10.1016/s0014-5793(03)00029-2
Subject(s) - apoptosis , hypoxia (environmental) , myocyte , ischemia , microbiology and biotechnology , caspase , chemistry , caspase 3 , programmed cell death , biology , medicine , endocrinology , biochemistry , oxygen , organic chemistry
Cardiac myocytes undergo apoptosis under condition of ischemia. Little is known, however, about the molecular pathways that mediate this response. We show that serum deprivation and hypoxia, components of ischemia in vivo, resulted in apoptosis of rat ventricular myoblast cells H9c2. Hypoxia alone did not induce significant apoptosis for at least 48 h, but largely increased the proapoptotic action of serum deprivation. H9c2 cells apoptosis is evidenced by an increase in terminal (TdT)‐mediated dUTP nick end‐labeling‐positive nuclei and by activation of caspases 3, 6, 7 and 9, and loss of mitochondrial functions. In this model of simulated ischemia, represented by serum deprivation plus hypoxia, cardiomyoblasts apoptosis was associated with a p53‐independent Bax accumulation and with a down‐regulation of Bcl‐xL, whereas the levels of cIAP‐1, cIAP‐2 and X‐IAP proteins did not change. Phorbol‐12‐myristate‐13‐acetate significantly reduced the induction of apoptosis, inhibiting caspase 3 cleavage, Bax accumulation, Bcl‐xL down‐regulation as well as restoring cell viability.