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This Article Full Text Full Text (PDF) All Versions of this Article: 295/2/H561    most recent 00401.2008v1 Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Citation Map Services Email this article to a friend Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Citing Articles Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Wei, H. Articles by Vander Heide, R. S. Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Wei, H. Articles by Vander Heide, R. S.

Heat stress activates AKT via focal adhesion kinase-mediated pathway in neonatal rat ventricular myocytes

¹Department of Pathology, Wayne State University Medical School and ²Department of Pathology, John D. Dingell Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Detroit, Michigan

Submitted 16 April 2008 ; accepted in final form 3 June 2008

Heat stress (HS)-induced cardioprotection is associated with increased paxillin localization to the membrane fraction of neonatal rat ventricular myocytes (NRVM). The purpose of this study was 1) to examine the subcellular signaling pathways activated by HS; 2) to determine whether myocardial stress organizes and activates an integrated survival pathway; and 3) to investigate potential downstream cytoprotective proteins activated by HS. After HS, NRVM were subjected to chemical inhibitors (CI) designed to simulate ischemia by inhibiting both glycolysis and mitochondrial respiration. Protein kinase B (AKT) expression (wild type) was increased selectively with an adenoviral vector. Cell signaling was analyzed with Western blot analysis, while oncosis/apoptosis was assayed by measuring Trypan blue exclusion and/or terminal deoxynucleotidyltransferase-mediated dUTP nick end labeling (TUNEL) staining, respectively. HS increased phosphorylation of focal adhesion kinase (FAK) at tyrosine 397 but did not adversely affect the viability of NRVM before CI. HS increased association between FAK and phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase as well as causing a significant increase in AKT activity. Increased expression of wild-type AKT protected myocytes from both oncotic and apoptotic cell death. Increased expression of a FAK inhibitor, FRNK, reduced AKT phosphorylation in response to HS both at time 0 and after 10 min of CI compared with myocytes expressing empty virus. We conclude that myocardial stress activates cytoskeleton-based signaling pathways that are associated with protection from lethal cell injury.

cell signaling; protection; ischemia