Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
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Query: EC:3.2.1.23 (beta-galactosidase)
 14,648 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

Previous studies have established that gene transfer into myocardial cells in vivo is detectable after direct injection of plasmid DNA. Recently, adenovirus vectors have been shown to provide an efficient method for gene transfer into a wide range of tissues. Therefore, this study sought to assess the efficiency and stability of adenovirus-mediated gene transfer into myocardium and to compare this method with that using plasmid-based gene transfer techniques. Adult rats underwent myocardial injection via a subdiaphragmatic approach. Gene transfer efficiency was compared using direct injection of an adenovirus vector encoding for the marker gene beta-galactosidase (beta-gal), a control adenovirus vector encoding for the cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator gene, a plasmid encoding for beta-gal, or a control plasmid. Hearts infected with an adenovirus vector containing the beta-gal gene showed significantly increased beta-gal enzymatic activity compared with hearts injected with beta-gal plasmid. Histological examination revealed that cardiac myocytes were the target of adenovirus-mediated gene transfer. A time course of gene expression showed that beta-gal enzymatic activity peaked during the first week following injection. Adenovirus vectors provide an efficient but transient method for in vivo gene expression in myocardium.
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PMID:Efficient gene transfer into myocardium by direct injection of adenovirus vectors. 822 91

Gene transfer as a therapeutic modality for the treatment of myocardial ischemia and/or infarction has been proposed as a revolutionary approach to improve collateral circulation, enhance myocardial viability and amplify healing. Our study was undertaken to assess the feasibility, efficiency, anatomic distribution, timing and localization of adenovirus-mediated gene transfer into the vicinity of infarcted myocardium in the adult mammalian heart. We induced myocardial infarction by subjecting rats to 60 min of coronary artery occlusion followed by sustained reperfusion. Gene transfer into the infarction area was performed using direct injection of a replication-defective adenovirus vector encoding the bacterial reporter gene, beta-galactosidase. A total of 5.0 x 10(9) plaque-forming units of virus was delivered into the left ventricular myocardium either immediately (n = 7) or at 7 (n = 6), 22 (n = 5) or 30 days (n = 5) after reperfusion of rat hearts. Control rats received either 50 microliters of saline 13 days after myocardial infarction (n = 2) or were not subjected to infarction and received Adenovirus carrying the beta-galactosidase gene as described above (n = 4). All rats were killed at 7 days after cardiac injection. Hearts were harvested, frozen and sectioned and stained for beta-galactosidase activity and with hematoxylin and eosin. Sections were evaluated by light microscopy. Relative beta-galactosidase activity was measured by digital planimetry and expressed as the ratio of the maximal area of beta-galactosidase staining relative to the total area of the section examined (% +/- S.E.M.). beta-galactosidase gene expression was limited mainly to viable myocytes at the border of the myocardial infarction. The area of transgene expression in the non-infarcted hearts (28 +/- 7%) was significantly higher (P = 0.02) than at any time point studied in infarcted tissues (3.4 +/- 1.2%, 1.4 +/- 1.0%, 2.8 +/- 0.8% and 3.4 +/- 0.9% at reperfusion and at 7, 22 and 30 days after myocardial infarction, respectively). Hearts injected 7 days after infarction had significantly less transgene activity (P = 0.03) with three of five samples displaying no macroscopically visible beta-gal activity. Following viral injection, an inflammatory response consisting of mononuclear cell infiltration was much less intense seven days following injection in non-infarcted control rat hearts than at any of the time points examined for infarcted hearts. Gene transfer into infarcted myocardium, while feasible, was limited by low transfection efficiency when compared to non-infarcted normal myocardium. Transgene expression in the infarcted myocardium appears restricted to residual cardiomyocytes in the periphery. Nevertheless, the ability to introduce genes into these viable peripheral cells might be a useful therapeutic strategy for enhancing neovascularization, collateral flow and healing.
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PMID:Adenovirus-mediated gene transfer into infarcted myocardium: feasibility, timing, and location of expression. 893 Aug 2

Granulocyte-colony stimulating factor (G-CSF) has been reported to mobilize bone marrow multi-potent stem cells, which differentiate into cardiac myocytes after myocardial infarction (MI). However, there have not been any reports regarding the effect of G-CSF on stem cell infiltration in the MI site. Hearts of mice that had undergone coronary occlusion were isolated and digested with collagenase. Infiltrating cells in the heart were collected using Percoll density gradients. The infiltrating cells were sorted for side population (SP) cells using Hoechst 33342 dye. Hundreds of infiltrating SP cells were found in the heart from 1 to 14 d after MI. There were only a few SP cells in hearts without infarction. Infiltrating SP cells were increased in the 4-d G-CSF treated group compared with the vehicle group (1106 +/- 106 vs. 323 +/- 26/heart, P < 0.05). The infiltration of inflammatory cells was not influenced by the G-CSF treatment. In a separate series of experiments, we confirmed that the infiltrating SP cells were derived from bone marrow. That is, SP cells in the infarcted hearts of mice, which had been transplanted with bone marrow from ROSA 26 (beta-galactosidase transgenic) mice, were positive for beta-galactosidase. In the immunohistochemical examination, Sca-1(+)/CD45(-) cells were existed in the infarcted site after MI. Therefore, SP cells may infiltrate into infarcted heart. G-CSF augmented this kind of stem cell infiltration without increasing inflammatory cells. These results suggest that G-CSF may enhance myocardial regeneration without aggravated inflammation in the infarcted heart.
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PMID:G-CSF treatment increases side population cell infiltration after myocardial infarction in mice. 1513 66

In failing hearts, a deficiency in sarco(endo)plasmic reticulum Ca2+ -ATPase (SERCA)2a results in abnormal Ca2+ handling and diminished contraction. In addition, a decrease in the phosphorylation of phospholamban (PLB) has been reported. Gene transfer of antisense PLB (asPLB) can improve contractile function in the failing human myocardium. Gene transfer of SERCA2a improves survival and the energy potential in failing hearts. The aim of present study was to evaluate whether enhancement of SERCA2a function prevents acute Ca2+ overload-induced left ventricular (LV) dysfunction in rat hearts. We ablated PLB using adenoviral gene transfer of asPLB by a new and less invasive gene delivery method, which involved a percutaneous technique. Experiments were performed on 13 excised cross-circulated rat hearts: 5 rats underwent sham operations, 4 rats underwent gene transfer of the reporter gene beta-galactosidase (Ad.beta-gal), and 4 rats underwent gene transfer of asPLB (Ad.asPLB). After clearance of high Ca2+ infused into the coronary, there was LV contractile dysfunction associated with the decreased myocardial O2 consumption per beat (Vo2) intercept (equal to decreased Vo2 for Ca2+ handling in excitation-contraction coupling) of the Vo2-systolic pressure-volume area (PVA; total mechanical energy per beat) linear relation in the hearts that underwent sham operation and had been infected with Ad.beta-gal. Hearts that had been infected with Ad.asPLB were rescued from LV contractile dysfunction associated with an unchanged Vo2 intercept of the Vo2-PVA linear relation. We conclude that SERCA2a function enhanced by adenoviral gene transfer of asPLB prevents Ca2+ overload-induced LV contractile dysfunction in terms of mechanical work and especially energetics.
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PMID:Rescue of Ca2+ overload-induced left ventricular dysfunction by targeted ablation of phospholamban. 1907 72

Although the contribution of Wnt signaling in infarct healing is suggested, its exact role after myocardial infarction (MI) still needs to be unraveled. We evaluated the cardiac presence of active Wnt signaling in vivo following MI, and investigated in which cell types active Wnt signaling was present by determining Axin2 promoter-driven LacZ expression. C57BL/6 Axin2-LacZ reporter mice were sacrificed at days 0, 1, 3, 7, 14, and 21 after LAD ligation. Hearts were snap-frozen for immunohistochemistry (IHC) or enzymatically digested to obtain a single cell suspension for flow cytometric analysis. For both FACS and IHC, samples were stained for beta-galactosidase and antibodies against Sca-1, CD31, ckit, and CD45. Active Wnt signaling increased markedly in the myocardium, from 7 days post-MI onwards. Using Sca-1 and CD31, to identify progenitor and endothelial cells, a significant increase in LacZ+ cells was found at 7 and 14 days post-MI. LacZ+ cells also increased in the ckit+ and CD45+ cell population. IHC revealed LacZ+ cells co-expressing Sca, CD31, CD45, vWF, and alphaSMA in the border zone and the infarcted area. Wnt signaling increased significantly after MI in Sca+- and CD31+-expressing cells, suggesting involvement of Wnt signaling in resident Sca+ progenitor cells, as well as endothelial cells. Moreover, active Wnt signaling was present in ckit+ cells, leukocytes, and fibroblast. Given its broad role during the healing phase after cardiac injury, additional research seems warranted before a therapeutic approach on Wnt to enhance cardiac regeneration can be carried out safely.
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PMID:Active Wnt signaling in response to cardiac injury. 2037 4