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01-11-2013 | Original Article

Ghrelin protects the heart against ischemia-induced arrhythmias by preserving connexin-43 protein

Authors: Takeshi Soeki, Toshiyuki Niki, Etsuko Uematsu, Sachiko Bando, Tomomi Matsuura, Kenya Kusunose, Takayuki Ise, Yuka Ueda, Noriko Tomita, Koji Yamaguchi, Kunihiko Koshiba, Shusuke Yagi, Daiju Fukuda, Yoshio Taketani, Takashi Iwase, Hirotsugu Yamada, Tetsuzo Wakatsuki, Masashi Akaike, Michio Shimabukuro, Ichiro Kishimoto, Kenji Kangawa, Masataka Sata

Published in: Heart and Vessels | Issue 6/2013

Abstract

Vagal nerve stimulation has been postulated to confer an antifibrillatory effect. We studied whether ghrelin administration would exert an antiarrhythmic effect via modulation of autonomic nerve activity in rats after acute myocardial ischemia (MI). Male Sprague-Dawley rats were exposed to 30 min of ischemia following ligation of the left coronary artery. Animals were then randomized to receive either ghrelin (n = 26) or saline (n = 26) during the period of coronary ligation. Power spectral analysis of heart-rate variability revealed that the administration of ghrelin increased the high-frequency (HF) power and decreased the low-frequency (LF)/HF ratio. Ventricular tachyarrhythmias were less frequent in rats after MI who received ghrelin in comparison with rats that received saline. Immunoblotting and immunohistochemistry revealed that rats given saline alone during MI exhibited a marked reduction in phosphorylated connexin-43 within the left ventricle, whereas those that received ghrelin displayed only minor reductions in comparison with sham-operated rats. These effects of ghrelin were diminished by the coadministration of atropine or the blockade of vagal afferents. These data demonstrate that the beneficial effect of ghrelin might be mediated by modulation of cardiac autonomic nerve activity.

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Title: Ghrelin protects the heart against ischemia-induced arrhythmias by preserving connexin-43 protein
Authors: Takeshi Soeki
Toshiyuki Niki
Etsuko Uematsu
Sachiko Bando
Tomomi Matsuura
Kenya Kusunose
Takayuki Ise
Yuka Ueda
Noriko Tomita
Koji Yamaguchi
Kunihiko Koshiba
Shusuke Yagi
Daiju Fukuda
Yoshio Taketani
Takashi Iwase
Hirotsugu Yamada
Tetsuzo Wakatsuki
Masashi Akaike
Michio Shimabukuro
Ichiro Kishimoto
Kenji Kangawa
Masataka Sata
Publication date: 01-11-2013
Publisher: Springer Japan
Published in: Heart and Vessels / Issue 6/2013
Print ISSN: 0910-8327
Electronic ISSN: 1615-2573
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00380-013-0333-2

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