Sphingosine-1-Phosphate Protects Against the Development of Cardiac Remodeling via Sphingosine Kinase 2 and the S1PR2/ERK Pathway

Objective Cardiac remodeling is a common pathological change in various cardiovascular diseases and can ultimately result in heart failure. Thus, there is an urgent need for more effective strategies to aid in cardiac protection. Our previous work found that sphingosine-1-phosphate (S1P) could ameliorate cardiac hypertrophy. In this study, we aimed to investigate whether S1P could prevent cardiac fibrosis and the associated mechanisms in cardiac remodeling. Methods Eight-week-old male C57BL/6 mice were randomly divided into a sham, transverse aortic constriction (TAC) or a TAC+S1P treatment group. Results We found that S1P treatment improved cardiac function in TAC mice and that the cardiac fibrosis ratio in the TAC+S1P group was significantly lower and was accompanied by a decrease in alpha-smooth muscle actin (alpha-SMA) and collagen type I (COL I) expression compared with the TAC group. We also found that one of the key S1P enzymes, sphingosine kinase 2 (SphK2), which was mainly distributed in cytoblasts, was downregulated in the cardiac remodeling case and recovered after S1P treatment in vivo and in vitro. In addition, our in vitro results showed that S1P treatment activated extracellular regulated protein kinases (ERK) phosphorylation mainly through the S1P receptor 2 (S1PR2) and spurred p-ERK transposition from the cytoplasm to cytoblast in H9c2 cells exposed to phenylephrine. Conclusion These findings suggest that SphK2 and the S1PR2/ERK pathway may participate in the anti-remodeling effect of S1P on the heart. This work therefore uncovers a novel potential therapy for the prevention of cardiac remodeling.

Automated summary

The objective of this study was to investigate whether sphingosine-1-phosphate (S1P) could prevent cardiac remodeling and the associated mechanisms. The results demonstrated that S1P treatment improved cardiac function and reduced cardiac fibrosis in a mouse model of transverse aortic constriction (TAC). The study also identified sphingosine kinase 2 (SphK2) and the S1P receptor 2 (S1PR2)/extracellular regulated protein kinases (ERK) pathway as potential mediators of the anti-remodeling effect of S1P on the heart.