Cardiac-Specific Overexpression of Fibroblast Growth Factor-2 Protects Against Myocardial Dysfunction and Infarction in a Murine Model of Low-Flow Ischemia

Stacey L. House, Craig Bolte, Ming Zhou, Thomas Doetschman, Raisa Klevitsky, Gilbert Newman, Jo El J. Schultz

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

105 Scopus citations

Abstract

Background-Preconditioning the heart before an ischemic insult has been shown to protect against contractile dysfunction, arrhythmias, and infarction. Pharmacological studies have suggested that fibroblast growth factor-2 (FGF2) is involved in cardioprotection. However, because of the number of FGFs expressed in the heart and the promiscuity of FGF ligand-receptor interactions, the specific role of FGF2 during ischemia-reperfusion injury remains unclear. Methods and Results-FGF2-deficient (Fgf2 knockout) mice and mice with a cardiac-specific overexpression of all 4 isoforms of human FGF2 (FGF2 transgenic [Tg]) were compared with wild-type mice to test whether endogenous FGF2 elicits cardioprotection. An ex vivo work-performing heart model of ischemia was developed in which murine hearts were subjected to 60 minutes of low-flow ischemia and 120 minutes of reperfusion. Preischemic contractile function was similar among the 3 groups. After ischemia-reperfusion, contractile function of Fgf2 knockout hearts recovered to 27% of its baseline value compared with a 63% recovery in wild-type hearts (P<0.05). In FGF2 Tg hearts, an 88% recovery of postischemic function occurred (P<0.05). Myocardial infarct size was also reduced in FGF2 Tg hearts compared with wild-type hearts (13% versus 30%, P<0.05). There was a 2-fold increase in FGF2 release from Tg hearts compared with wild-type hearts (P<0.05). No significant alterations in coronary flow or capillary density were detected in any of the groups, implying that the protective effect of FGF2 is not mediated by coronary perfusion changes. Conclusions-These results provide evidence that endogenous FGF2 plays a significant role in the cardioprotective effect against ischemia-reperfusion injury.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)3140-3148
Number of pages9
JournalCirculation
Volume108
Issue number25
DOIs
StatePublished - Dec 23 2003

Keywords

  • Growth substances
  • Ischemia
  • Myocardial infarction
  • Myocardial stunning

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Cardiology and Cardiovascular Medicine
  • Physiology (medical)

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Cardiac-Specific Overexpression of Fibroblast Growth Factor-2 Protects Against Myocardial Dysfunction and Infarction in a Murine Model of Low-Flow Ischemia'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this