Abstract
Berberine (BBR) is routinely prescribed in many Asian countries to treat diarrhea. Evidence from both animal and clinical investigations suggests that BBR exerts diverse pharmacological activities, including antidiabetic, antineoplastic, antihypertensive, and antiatherosclerotic effects. This study aimed to explore the cardioprotective mechanisms of BBR and to elucidate the modulations between autophagy and mitochondrial function during hypoxia/reoxygenation (H/R) in H9c2 cells. The degree of autophagic flux was assessed by pretreating H9c2 cells with BBR prior to H/R exposure and measuring the expression levels of Beclin-1 and green fluorescent protein (GFP)-labeled LC3B fusion proteins as well as the LC3II/LC3I ratio. The mitochondrial membrane potential (△Ψm) in H9c2 cells was evaluated by detecting rhodamine-123 fluorescence using flow cytometry. The results revealed that pretreatment with BBR upregulated autophagic flux and protected against the loss of the △Ψm in H9c2 cells subjected to H/R. We conclude that BBR attenuates mitochondrial dysfunction by inducing autophagic flux.
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Abbreviations
- ATP:
-
adenosine triphosphate
- AVs:
-
autophagic vacuoles
- GFP-LC3B:
-
green fluorescent protein-labeled LC3B
- H/R:
-
hypoxia/reoxygenation
- I/R:
-
ischemia/reperfusion
- LC3:
-
microtubule-associated protein 1 light chain 3
- TEM:
-
transmission electron microscopy
- △Ψm:
-
mitochondrial membrane potential
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Funding
This study was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (project number: U1704167, to Dr. Cao), Henan Provincial Science and Technology Project (project numbers: 182102310525 (Dr. Cao), 172102310063 (Dr. Hao), and 202102310088 (Dr. Li)), Joint Construction Project of Henan Medical Science and Technology Tackling Plan (project number: 2018020475 (Dr. Zhu)), Henan Medical Science and Technology Tackling Plan Provincial-ministerial Coconstruction Project (project number: SB201902033 (Dr. Cao)), and Key scientific research projects of colleges and Universities of Henan Province (project number: 20A320086 (Dr. Li)).
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Zhu, N., Cao, X., Hao, P. et al. Berberine attenuates mitochondrial dysfunction by inducing autophagic flux in myocardial hypoxia/reoxygenation injury. Cell Stress and Chaperones 25, 417–426 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12192-020-01081-5
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12192-020-01081-5