Antiapoptosis and Antifibrosis Effects of Qishen Granules on Heart Failure Rats via Hippo Pathway
BIOMED RESEARCH INTERNATIONAL
Authors: Zhang, Jian; Liu, Junjie; Gao, Sheng; Lin, Weili; Gao, Pengrong; Gao, Kuo; Zhang, Yili; Du, Kangjia; Yang, Xiaomin; Wang, Wei; Zhu, Ruixin; Wang, Yong
Abstract
Qishen granules (QSG) are a famous formula with cardioprotective properties to heart failure (HF). The aim of this study was to investigate the underlying mechanism of QSG on apoptosis and fibrosis in the treatment of HF. HF model was induced by left anterior descending artery ligation on Sprague-Dawley rats. Transcriptome analysis was used to investigate the regulatory pathways of QSG on HF. Interestingly, downregulated genes of QSG were significantly enriched in Hippo pathway which plays a crucial role in regulating cell apoptosis and proliferation. We found that QSG inhibited the expressions of proapoptotic key proteins P-53 and fibrosis-related proteins TGF-beta 1, SMAD3, and CTGF. Further, we conducted research on the key proteins in the Hippo pathway upstream of CTGF and P-53. The results showed that MST1, P-MST1, P-LATS1, and RASSF1A that exert proapoptotic function were downregulated after QSG intervention. Similarly, P-YAP and P-TAZ, mediating self-degradation and apoptosis, were both observably decreased after QSG administration. Taken together, QSG are shown to be likely to exert cardioprotective effects by inhibiting the progression of apoptosis and fibrosis through Hippo pathway.
YAP mediates the interaction between the Hippo and PI3K/Akt pathways in mesangial cell proliferation in diabetic nephropathy
ACTA DIABETOLOGICA
Authors: Qian, Xuan; He, Linlin; Hao, Meng; Li, Yuan; Li, Xizhi; Liu, Yiqi; Jiang, Hong; Xu, Liu; Li, Chengcheng; Wu, Wenya; Du, Lei; Yin, Xiaoxing; Lu, Qian
Abstract
Aims Glomerular mesangial cell (MC) proliferation is one of the main pathological changes in diabetic nephropathy (DN), but its mechanism needs further elaboration. The Hippo and PI3K/Akt signalling pathways are involved in the regulation of MC proliferation, but their relationship in hyperglycaemia-induced MC proliferation has not been reported. Methods We useddb/dbmice and high-glucose-cultured mesangial cells to generate a diabetic nephropathy model. An MST1-knockdown plasmid was used to identify whether the PI3K/Akt pathway is linked to the Hippo pathway through MST1. LY294002 and SC79 were used to verify the role of the PI3K/Akt signalling pathway in MC cells. RNA silencing and overexpression were performed by using YAP and PTEN-expression/knockdown plasmids to investigate the function of YAP and PTEN, respectively, in the Hippo and PI3K/Akt signalling pathways. Results By examining a potential feedback loop, we found decreased phosphorylation of MST1 and Lats1 and increased PI3K/Akt activation indb/dbmice and high glucose-treated MCs, along with increased MC proliferation. The results of our gene silencing experiment proved PI3K/Akt-mediated intervention in the Hippo pathway and the regulatory effect of YAP on PI3K/Akt through PTEN. Conclusions The Hippo pathway is inhibited under diabetic conditions, leading to YAP activation and promoting MC proliferation. The PI3K/Akt pathway is activated through the inhibitory effect of YAP on its repressor, PTEN. Finally, activation of the PI3K/Akt pathway inhibits the Hippo pathway, resulting in nuclear YAP accumulation and accelerating MC proliferation and DN formation.