Maurice Wibo

Postnatal maturation of excitation-contraction coupling in rat ventricle in relation to the subcellular localization and surface density of 1,4-dihydropyridine and ryanodine receptors.

To better understand excitation-contraction coupling in cardiac muscle, we investigated the main Ca2+ channels involved in that process in adult and neonatal rat ventricle. Voltage-dependent (L-type) Ca2+ channels and sarcoplasmic reticulum Ca2+ release channels were labeled by means of [3H] (+)-PN200-110 and [3H]ryanodine, respectively. The number of [3H]ryanodine binding sites (per gram tissue) increased more than that of [3H] (+)-PN200-110 binding sites over the postnatal period (2.1-fold versus 1.35-fold, respectively). After equilibration of microsomal fractions in density gradient, ryanodine receptors were characterized by a heavy distribution pattern that did not change appreciably between days 1 and 30 after birth. In neonatal tissue, 1,4-dihydropyridine receptors were found mainly in low-density subfractions, together with other sarcolemmal constituents, whereas in adult tissue, they were recovered predominantly in high-density subfractions, together with ryanodine receptors. Thus, after birth, and in parallel with the development of T tubules, there was a progressive concentration of L-type Ca2+ channels in junctional structures of high equilibrium density, where they were situated close to the Ca2+ release channels of the sarcoplasmic reticulum. In adult ventricle, L-type channels were, on an average, threefold more abundant in T tubules than in external sarcolemma. In parallel mechanical studies, we found that the inhibitory action of ryanodine on systolic contraction was much more pronounced in adult than in neonatal right ventricle, and that, conversely, neonatal tissue was more sensitive that adult tissue to inhibitors of L-type channels. We conclude that, in view of the presumed mechanism of Ca2+ release from the sarcoplasmic reticulum, that is, Ca(2+)-induced Ca2+ release, the predominant localization in adult rat ventricle of the major Ca2+ entry pathway in the vicinity of the Ca2+ release pathway is of great functional significance. Furthermore, owing to the relative stoichiometry of Ca2+ entry and Ca2+ release channels in junctional structures (about 1:9), a physical link between these channels is not likely to be involved in the modulation of Ca2+ release from the sarcoplasmic reticulum in cardiac muscle.

PHARMACOLOGICAL EVIDENCE OF HYPOTENSIVE ACTIVITY OF MARRUBIUM VULGARE AND FOENICULUM VULGARE IN SPONTANEOUSLY HYPERTENSIVE RAT

The hypotensive effects of the water extract of Marrubium vulgare L. and Foeniculum vulgare L. were investigated in spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHR) and in normotensive Wistar-Kyoto rats (WKY). Oral administration of Marrubium or Foeniculum extract lowered the systolic blood pressure of SHR but not of WKY. In SHR, Foeniculum but not Marrubium treatment increased water, sodium and potassium excretion. Ex vivo as well as in vitro, Marrubium extract inhibited the contractile responses of rat aorta to noradrenaline and to KCl (100 mM). Inhibition was greater in aorta from SHR compared to WKY and was not affected by the NO synthase inhibitor N-nitro-L-arginine. Vascular effects of Foeniculum extract were less pronounced than those of Marrubium and were blocked by N-nitro-L-arginine. These results indicate that hypotensive activity of Marrubium and Foeniculum extracts seems to be mediated through different pathways: Foeniculum appeared to act mainly as a diuretic and a natriuretic while Marrubium displayed vascular relaxant activity.

Pharmacologic relevance of dihydropyridine binding sites in membranes from rat aorta: kinetic and equilibrium studies.

The kinetic features of the interaction of dihydropyridines with rat aortic smooth muscle were investigated in parallel mechanical and binding studies. The inhibitory action of (+)-PN200-110 and nisoldipine on contractions evoked by potassium chloride depolarization was characterized by a pronounced time dependency, in which the inhibition increased slowly after depolarization to attain a steady-state value, while with (-)-PN200-110 and (+)-Bay K8644 the inhibition was almost instantaneous. To explain these observations, specific binding sites for dihydropyridines were studied i n membranes isolated from rat aorta, using [3H](+)-PN200-110 as a radioligand. We found that the time course of the development of inhibition of potassium chloride-evoked contractions by various concentrations of (+)-PN200-110 paralleled the time course of [3H](+)-PN200-l10 binding to isolated membranes and that the level of inhibition was predictable from the level of occupation of these binding sites. These results indicate that depolarization increases the affinity of calcium channels for dihydropyridines in vascular smooth muscle and that the time course of the inhibitory effect on contraction is determined by the time course of association with the high-affinity state of the channel.

Effect of endothelin-1 on calcium channel gating by agonists in vascular smooth muscle.

Summary Rat isolated aorta was more sensitive to the contractile effect of endothelin-1 (ET-1) when the endothelium was removed. ET-1 was more potent on mesenteric resistance arteries than on aorta. A threshold concentration of ET-1 (100 pM) enhanced the contractile responses of aortic rings to Bay K 8644 and clonidine, especially in the absence of endothelium. Potentiation of clonidine-evoked contraction was accompanied by an enhancement of 45Ca influx and was abolished by nifedipine. These actions of ET-1 (100 pM) could not be attributed to a decrease in membrane potential or in cAMP levels. ET-1 (100 pM) decreased cGMP in intact aortic rings, which could contribute to its actions in the presence of endothelium. Removal of endothelium reduced cGMP levels and these were not further decreased by ET-1. Since ET-1 exerted a pronounced potentiating effect in the absence of endothelium, it is likely that ET-1 modulates calcium channels by an additional mechanism, unrelated to cyclic nucleotides.

Agonist-evoked calcium entry in vascular smooth muscle cells requires IP3 receptor-mediated activation of TRPC1.

Transient receptor potential canonical (TRPC) proteins have been proposed to function as plasma membrane Ca2+ channels activated by store depletion and/or by receptor stimulation. However, their role in the increase in cytosolic Ca2+ activated by contractile agonists in vascular smooth muscle is not yet elucidated. The present study was designed to investigate the functional and molecular properties of the Ca2+ entry pathway activated by endothelin-1 in primary cultured aortic smooth muscle cells. Measurement of the Ca2+ signal in fura-2-loaded cells allowed to characterize endothelin-1-evoked Ca2+ entry, which was resistant to dihydropyridine, and was blocked by 2-aminoethoxydiphenylborate (2-APB) and micromolar concentration of Gd3+. It was not activated by store depletion, but was inhibited by the endothelin ETA receptor antagonist BQ-123, and by heparin. On the opposite, thapsigargin-induced store depletion activated a Ca2+ entry pathway that was not affected by 2-APB, BQ-123 or heparin, and was less sensitive to Gd3+ than was endothelin-1-evoked Ca2+ entry. Investigation of the gene expression of TRPC isoforms by real-time RT-PCR revealed that TRPC1 was the most abundant. In cells transfected with TRPC1 small interfering RNA sequence, TRPC1 mRNA and protein expression were decreased by 72+/-3% and 86+/-2%, respectively, while TRPC6 expression was unaffected. In TRPC1 knockdown cells, both endothelin-1-evoked Ca2+ entry and store-operated Ca2+ entry evoked by thapsigargin were blunted. These results indicate that in aortic smooth muscle cells, TRPC1 is not only involved in Ca2+ entry activated by store depletion but also in receptor-operated Ca2+ entry, which requires inositol (1,4,5) triphosphate receptor activation.

Comparative Study of the Antihypertensive Activity of Marrubium Vulgare and of the Dihydropyridine Calcium Antagonist Amlodipine in Spontaneously Hypertensive Rat

Water extract of Marrubium vulgare is widely used as antihypertensive treatment in folk medicine. We have compared the effect of 10‐week‐long treatment with amlodipine or Marrubium water extract on systolic blood pressure (SBP), cardiovascular remodeling and vascular relaxation in spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHR). Both treatments produced similar decrease in SBP. Amlodipine treatment reduced left ventricle, aortic and mesenteric artery weight. Marrubium treatment had a significant antihypertrophic effect in aorta only. Relaxation to acetylcholine (ACh) of mesenteric artery was improved by Marrubium but not by amlodipine treatment. These results demonstrate that, in addition to its antihypertensive effect, Marrubium water extract improved the impaired endothelial function in SHR.

Characterisation of marrubenol, a diterpene extracted from Marrubium vulgare, as an L-type calcium channel blocker.

The objective of the present study was to investigate the mechanism of the relaxant activity of marrubenol, a diterpenoid extracted from Marrubium vulgare. In rat aorta, marrubenol was a more potent inhibitor of the contraction evoked by 100 mM KCl (IC50: 11.8±0.3 μM, maximum relaxation: 93±0.6%) than of the contraction evoked by noradrenaline (maximum relaxation: 30±1.5%). In fura‐2‐loaded aorta, marrubenol simultaneously inhibited the Ca2+ signal and the contraction evoked by 100 mM KCl, and decreased the quenching rate of fura‐2 fluorescence by Mn2+. Patch‐clamp data obtained in aortic smooth muscle cells (A7r5) indicated that marrubenol inhibited Ba2+ inward current in a voltage‐dependent manner (KD: 8±2 and 40±6 μM at holding potentials of −50 and −100 mV, respectively). These results showed that marrubenol inhibits smooth muscle contraction by blocking L‐type calcium channels.

A calmodulin-stimulated ca2+ pump in rat aorta plasma membranes

An ATP-driven Ca2+-transport system has been characterized in a microsomal fraction from rat aorta. Calmodulin enhanced 2.5-fold 45Ca accumulation by EGTA-treated microsomes incubated with 10 microM Ca2+ (in the absence of oxalate) by increasing markedly the apparent affinity of the transport system for Ca2+. The ionophore A23187 induced a rapid release of the sequestered 45Ca. The vesicles that took up 45Ca were distributed like plasmalemmal marker enzymes when the microsomal fraction was subfractionated by density gradient centrifugation. In particular, these vesicles were markedly shifted towards higher equilibrium densities after addition to the microsomes of 0.2 mg digitonin/mg protein before isopycnic centrifugation. We conclude that the calmodulin-stimulated Ca2+ pump associated with the microsomal fraction is located in plasmalemmal elements.

Subcellular localization of [3H]-nitrendipine binding sites in guinea-pig ileal smooth muscle.

1 The binding of [3H]‐nitrendipine was studied in microsomal fractions isolated from guinea‐pig ileal smooth muscle. 2 Only one class of specific binding sites was detected, with a KD of 0.4 nM. For various dihydropyridine derivatives, including the stereoisomers of nimodipine and the ‘Ca agonist’ Bay K 8644, the potency for inhibition of [3H]‐nitrendipine binding correlated well with the reported pharmacological potency in smooth muscle preparations. 3 To establish the subcellular localization of [3H]‐nitrendipine binding sites, untreated and digitonin‐treated microsomal fractions were subfractionated by isopycnic density gradient centrifugation. The density distribution of [3H]‐nitrendipine binding was markedly shifted by digitonin towards higher densities, as were the distributions of 5′‐nucleotidase and [3H]‐ouabain binding, whereas the distributions of NADPH:cytochrome c reductase and NADH:cytochrome c reductase were hardly modified by digitonin. 4 It is concluded that most, if not all, [3H]‐nitrendipine binding sites in guinea‐pig ileal smooth muscle are present in the plasma membrane, in agreement with the postulated mode of action of dihydropyridines as inhibitors of plasmalemmal Ca channels.

Lacidipine prevents endothelial dysfunction in salt-loaded stroke-prone hypertensive rats.

Endothelium-dependent vasorelaxation is defective in hypertensive rats, especially in conduit arteries. In the stroke-prone spontaneously hypertensive rat, impaired endothelium-dependent vasorelaxation appears to contribute to the pathogenesis of stroke independent of blood pressure. Because treatment with lacidipine, a long-acting calcium channel blocker, protects against stroke and cardiovascular remodeling in this model, we investigated the effect of this treatment on endothelium-dependent vasorelaxation in the aorta. Stroke-prone rats were exposed to a salt-rich diet (1% NaCl in drinking water) with or without lacidipine (1 mg · kg−1 · d−1) for 6 weeks. A high-sodium diet (1) increased systolic blood pressure, aortic weight, and wall thickness and plasma renin activity (P <0.05); (2) markedly reduced nitric oxide (NO)-mediated, endothelium-dependent relaxation of aortic rings to acetylcholine and the sensitivity to the relaxing effect of S-nitroso-N-acetylpenicillamine, an NO donor (P <0.001); and (3) induced an elevation of preproendothelin-1 mRNA levels in aortic tissue (P <0.01) without affecting endothelial NO synthase mRNA levels. Lacidipine treatment prevented the salt-dependent functional and structural alterations of the aorta, including the overexpression of the preproendothelin-1 gene, and increased endothelial NO synthase mRNA levels in aortic tissue (P <0.01). In conclusion, lacidipine protects stroke-prone hypertensive rats against the impairment of endothelium-dependent vasorelaxation evoked by a salt-rich diet, and this effect may contribute to its beneficial effect against end-organ damage and stroke.