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European Journal of Heart Failure 2008 10(2):129-132; doi:10.1016/j.ejheart.2007.12.013
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© 2008 European Society of Cardiology

Quantitative analysis of apoptotic markers in human end-stage heart failure

Lorenz Bott-Flügela,*,1, Hans-Jörg Weiga,1,2, Heiko Ühleina, Michael Nabauerb, Karl-Ludwig Laugwitza and Melchior Seyfartha

a Medizinische Klinik und Deutsches Herzzentrum München, Technische Universität Munich, Germany
b Medizinische Klinik, Klinikum Großhadern der Ludwigs-Maximilians-Universität München Munich, Germany

* Corresponding author. Deutsches Herzzentrum München, Lazarettstr. 36, 80636 Munich, Germany. Tel.: +49 89 1218 4566; fax: +49 89 1218 4593. E-mail address: bott-fluegel{at}med1.med.tu-muenchen.de (L. Bott-Flügel).


  Abstract

Apoptosis – programmed cell death – has been implicated in a variety of cardiac diseases, including myocardial infarction and chronic heart failure. This study was conducted to quantify the amount of apoptotic markers in human end-stage heart failure and to correlate the results to clinical parameters of heart failure.

Myocardial samples from 44 patients with end-stage heart failure and 5 controls were collected at the time of heart transplantation. Lysates of tissue samples were analysed for cleavage of alpha actin, alpha actinin, troponin T, tropomyosin, essential myosin light chain-1 (MLC-1v), and gelsolin. We observed cleavage of alpha actin, and alpha actinin. Troponin I, tropomyosin, and MLC-1v were not detectably cleaved. The amount of active caspase-3 was low in all samples (1.10±0.1 ng/ml). The same applied for DNA histone fragments (0.61±0.04). In patients with acutely decompensated heart failure we observed a striking increase in caspase-3 activity, but not DNA fragmentation. When calculated for the entire group there was no correlation between caspase-3 activity, DNA fragmentation and haemodynamic or echocardiographic variables. Relevant increases in apoptosis were only observed in patients with acute decompensated heart failure.

Key Words: Apoptosis • Heart failure • Caspase-3 • Contractile proteins

Received August 11, 2007; Revised October 29, 2007; Accepted December 19, 2007

1 L. Bott-Flügel and H.J. Weig contributed equally to this manuscript.

2 H.J. Weig moved since conclusion of the project: III. Medizinische Klinik und Poliklinik, Eberhard-Karls-Universität, Tübingen, Germany.


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