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Canna~Fangled Abstracts

2-Arachidonoylglycerol Attenuates Myocardial Fibrosis in Diabetic Mice Via the TGF-β1/Smad Pathway

By March 19, 2022March 21st, 2022No Comments

. 2022 Mar 19.

doi: 10.1007/s10557-021-07307-7.

Online ahead of print.
Zhengjie Chen 1, Liangyu Zheng 1, Gang Chen 2
Affiliations 

Abstract

Purpose: Diabetic cardiomyopathy (DM) is the cause of late cardiac dysfunction in diabetic patients. Myocardial fibrosis is the main pathological mechanism, and it is associated with transforming growth factor-β1(TGF-β1) expression up-regulation. 2-Arachidonoylglycerol (2-AG) is an endogenous cannabinoid that can effectively improve myocardial cell energy metabolism and cardiac function. Here, we evaluated the protective effect of 2-AG on diabetic cardiomyopathy.

Methods: Male C57BL/6 mice were injected with 2-AG intraperitoneally for 4 weeks (10 micro g/kg/day) after 12 weeks of diabetic modeling. After 4 weeks, heart function was evaluated by echocardiography. Heart structure was assessed by hematoxylin and eosin staining. Cardiac fibrosis was analyzed using immunohistochemistry, Sirius red stain, and western blot.

Results: After modeling in diabetic mice, cardiac ultrasonography showed decreased cardiac function and pathological findings showed myocardial fibrosis. 2-AG could effectively inhibit the up-regulation of TGF-β1 and Smad2/3, reduce myocardial fibrosis, and ultimately improve cardiac function in diabetic mice.

Conclusion: 2-AG reduces cardiac fibrosis via the TGF-β1/Smad2/3 pathway and is a potential pathway for the treatment of cardiac dysfunction in diabetic mice.

Keywords: 2-Arachidonoylglycerol; Diabetic cardiomyopathy; Myocardial Fibrosis; TGF-β1.

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