British Journal of Pharmacology最新文献

{"title":"A bio. tools collection of online resources for GPCR research.","authors":"Tõnis Laasfeld, Friederike Wunsch, Avgi E Apostolakou, Adrián García-Recio, Gáspár Pándy-Szekeres, Slawomir Filipek, Masha Y Niv, Jana Selent, David E Gloriam, Marcel Bermudez","doi":"10.1111/bph.17461","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/bph.17461","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>G protein-coupled receptors are highly complex signal transduction proteins with many potential biomedical applications. Researchers from different fields work together to improve mechanistic understanding of GPCR function and to transfer that knowledge in order to advance therapeutic options. Due to the interdisciplinary nature of GPCR research, many databases and web tools with different types and levels of information are being developed to support scientists in sharing and analysing data. Here, we aim to give an overview of freely available online chemoinformatics and bioinformatics resources specifically designed to aid GPCR research. We compiled a dedicated domain on ELIXIR's bio. tools portal as a continuously updatable repository of GPCR-related online resources (https://bio.tools/t?domain=gpcr). This provides an up-to-date overview of available tools, rather than a static list representing only a snapshot in time. Furthermore, we give some recommendations for developing and using scientific online resources and briefly describe selected databases and web-based tools for GPCR research.</p>","PeriodicalId":9262,"journal":{"name":"British Journal of Pharmacology","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":6.8,"publicationDate":"2025-02-24","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143490762","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Sculponeatin A induces mitochondrial dysfunction in non-small cell lung cancer through WWP2-mediated degradation of mitochondrial STAT3.","authors":"Fang Wan, Chen Qian, Xuewen Liu, Yifan Zhong, Wenkang Peng, Liang Zhang, Xiangrong Zhan, Yongtong Huang, Chengyu Zhang, Jiu Wang, Yuan Si, Ying Liu","doi":"10.1111/bph.17460","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/bph.17460","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background and purpose: </strong>The phosphorylation of signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 (STAT3) monomer at S727 promotes its mitochondrial localisation and regulates mitochondrial function, thus exerting a protective effect on tumour cells. However, no inhibitor drugs targeting mitochondrial STAT3 (mitoSTAT3) or S727-STAT3 phosphorylation have been identified. Here, we report a novel diterpenoid extracted from Isodon sculponeatus, sculponeatin A (sptA), induces mitochondrial dysfunction in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) by targeting mitoSTAT3 degradation.</p><p><strong>Experimental approach: </strong>xCELLigence real-time cell analysis assay and high-content analysis were performed to measure cytotoxicity. Mitochondrial function was assessed by transmission electron microscopy, mitochondrial permeability transition pore opening and Seahorse cellular flux assays. The effects of sptA on the upstream signalling pathway of mitochondrial dysfunction were measured by Western blot, gene alterations and other approaches. Immunofluorescence and live cell imaging were performed to visualise the expression and position of mitoSTAT3. Nude mice and zebrafish were modelled with subcutaneous xenografts. Pharmacokinetics of sptA were examined in rats. Drug toxicity was evaluated in zebrafish.</p><p><strong>Key results: </strong>sptA inhibited mitochondrial respiration in NSCLC cells. sptA induced mitochondrial dysfunction by promoting the degradation of mitoSTAT3. sptA promoted WW domain containing E3 ubiquitin protein ligase 2 (WWP2)-mediated ubiquitination and degradation of mitoSTAT3 through direct binding. sptA inhibited tumour growth in vivo. Evaluation of drug toxicity in zebrafish showed that overdose of sptA may cause heart damage.</p><p><strong>Conclusions and implications: </strong>These findings suggest that pharmacological targeting the degradation of mitoSTAT3 by sptA may provide therapeutic benefits against NSCLC.</p>","PeriodicalId":9262,"journal":{"name":"British Journal of Pharmacology","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":6.8,"publicationDate":"2025-02-24","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143490765","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Antibiotic-induced decrease of bacterial load in guinea pig intestine reduces α₂-adrenoceptor expression and activity in peristaltic motor inhibition.","authors":"Aitak Farzi, Eva Tatzl, Karl Kashofer, Slave Trajanoski, Michael K Herbert, Peter Holzer","doi":"10.1111/bph.70001","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/bph.70001","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background and purpose: </strong>The use of analgosedatives in critically ill patients carries the risk of impairing gastrointestinal (GI) propulsion and could thereby lead to sepsis. The gut microbiota can influence GI motility, but whether GI microbial dysbiosis modifies GI peristalsis impairment by analgosedative drugs has not yet been analysed. This question was addressed in the guinea pig small intestine following a decrease of bacterial load by antibiotic pretreatment.</p><p><strong>Experimental approach: </strong>Guinea pigs were enorally (within the mouth) pretreated with meropenem, neomycin and vancomycin, and antibiotic-induced decrease of bacterial load was confirmed by 16S rDNA sequencing. Peristalsis in the isolated guinea pig small intestine was evaluated by determining the pressure threshold at which a peristaltic wave is triggered. The expression of factors that may be relevant to communication between GI microbiota and the motor system was examined at the mRNA (quantitative (q)PCR]) and/or protein (enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay [ELISA]) level.</p><p><strong>Key results: </strong>Antibiotic treatment disturbed the small intestinal microbiome as shown by decrease of bacterial load and reduced alpha diversity. Microbial dysbiosis did not affect peristalsis at baseline but blunted the ability of α₂ agonists to inhibit peristalsis, while the anti-peristaltic effects of sufentanil, midazolam, neostigmine and propofol were inconsistently affected. These functional alterations were complemented by a decreased expression of α₂-adrenoceptors, toll-like receptors (TRL) 3, 4 & 7, IFN-γ and iNOS.</p><p><strong>Conclusion and implications: </strong>Antibiotic-induced decrease of bacterial load in the small intestine selectively blunts the ability of α₂ agonists to impair peristalsis. This effect is explained by decreased α₂-adrenoceptor expression, which may arise from TLR down-regulation in the dysbiotic gut.</p>","PeriodicalId":9262,"journal":{"name":"British Journal of Pharmacology","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":6.8,"publicationDate":"2025-02-23","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143482187","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Spontaneous and pharmacologically induced hypothermia protect mice against endotoxic shock.","authors":"Arely Tinajero, Warda Merchant, Adan Khan, Surbhi, Alexandre Caron, Ryan Reynolds, Lin Jia, Laurent Gautron","doi":"10.1111/bph.70000","DOIUrl":"10.1111/bph.70000","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background and purpose: </strong>Despite the well-known occurrence of hypothermia during sepsis, its underlying biological nature and adaptive value remain debated.</p><p><strong>Experimental approach: </strong>Using indirect calorimetry, telemetry, thermal gradient studies and pharmacological studies, we examined the thermal and metabolic responses of mice treated with a shock-inducing lethal dose of lipopolysaccharide (LPS).</p><p><strong>Key results: </strong>We report that LPS-treated mice undergo spontaneous hypothermia, driven by hypometabolism and cold-seeking behaviours, even when animals approach the end of life. Conversely, rewarming LPS-treated mice at 30°C delayed hypothermia but worsened mortality, thus highlighting the adaptive importance of hypothermia. Additionally, we show that LPS-induced hypothermia was partly mediated by peripheral neurotensin expressed in response to vascular toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4) signalling. The administration of a neurotensin analogue (JMV449) induced pharmacological hypothermia and significantly ameliorated the clinical presentation and lethality rates in LPS-treated mice. Moreover, the therapeutic benefits of pharmacological hypothermia were prevented when LPS-treated mice were switched to 30°C. Lastly, these beneficial outcomes were attributed to a reduction in oxygen consumption, metabolic stress and cytopathic hypoxia, rather than the modulation of the cytokine storm.</p><p><strong>Conclusion and implications: </strong>Collectively, our findings indicate that spontaneous and pharmacologically-induced hypothermia protect against endotoxic shock.</p>","PeriodicalId":9262,"journal":{"name":"British Journal of Pharmacology","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":6.8,"publicationDate":"2025-02-23","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143482188","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Opportunities of patient-derived organoids in drug development.","authors":"Antonia Büning, Elena Reckzeh","doi":"10.1111/bph.70010","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/bph.70010","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Various model systems are utilised during drug development starting from basic research, moving to preclinical research and development for clinical applications in order to identify new drugs to improve human health. However, there are characteristics of humans that are not captured by established models. Such models include homogeneous two-dimensional (2D) cell lines, which lack cellular heterogeneity and physiological relevance, and species differences of animal models. Organoids can mitigate these differences by providing more physiologically relevant three-dimensional (3D) cell models that resemble the molecular state in healthy and pathological tissue. This review presents exemplary approaches using patient-derived organoids (PDOs) that have been developed and the new opportunities that are evolving in drug development with a focus on patient adult stem cell (ASC)-derived organoids. These demonstrate the potential of PDOs used alongside established cell and animal models to improve drug development from basic research to clinical applications such as personalised medicine.</p>","PeriodicalId":9262,"journal":{"name":"British Journal of Pharmacology","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":6.8,"publicationDate":"2025-02-20","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143467006","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Blockade of P2X7 receptors preserves blood retinal barrier integrity by modulating the plasmalemma vesicle-associated protein: Implications for diabetic retinopathy.","authors":"Chiara Bianca Maria Platania, Francesca Lazzara, Kenneth Mitton, Naomi Haque, Wendelin Dailey, Federica Conti, Erika Giuffrida, Filippo Drago, Anca Hermenean, Cornel Balta, Hildegard Herman, Alina Ciceu, Maria Consiglia Trotta, Michele D'Amico, Giuseppe Nicosia, Settimio Rossi, Claudio Bucolo","doi":"10.1111/bph.70007","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/bph.70007","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background and purpose: </strong>Plasmalemma vesicle-associated protein (PLVAP) regulates transcytosis in vascular endothelial cells. PLVAP expression is increased in pathological conditions, such as diabetic retinopathy. P2X7 receptor antagonists have been shown to preserve blood-retinal barrier (BRB) integrity. Here, we have tested the hypothesis that PLVAP expression is tightly linked to P2X7 receptor activity, leading to breakdown of the BRB in an in vitro model of diabetic retinopathy.</p><p><strong>Experimental approach: </strong>We integrated network approaches with an in vitro model of diabetic retinopathy using primary human retinal microvascular endothelial cells (HRMECs). Cells were treated with a P2X7 receptor antagonist, JNJ47965567, and expression of several genes predicted to belong to the P2X7 receptor signalling network were assessed. Levels and localisation of PLVAP, VE-cadherin and zonula occludens-1 (ZO-1) in HRMECs were evaluated. In vivo, the effects of JNJ47965567 on PLVAP expression in the retinas of diabetic mice were assessed.</p><p><strong>Key results: </strong>High levels of glucose increased PLVAP expression in HRMECs, which was blocked by JNJ47965567. Furthermore, JNJ47965567 preserved VE-cadherin and ZO-1. In the choroidal vasculature of diabetic mice, PLVAP immunostaining was increased, compared to levels in non-diabetic mice. This increase was significantly attenuated by treatment with JNJ47965567 CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS: This study showed that P2X7 receptor signalling is an important component of a complex gene regulatory network, including PLVAP, mediating the pathophysiology of diabetic retinopathy. The P2X7 receptor antagonist JNJ47965567 showed a good pharmacodynamic profile, suggesting that this approach could be of value in the treatment of diabetic retinopathy.</p>","PeriodicalId":9262,"journal":{"name":"British Journal of Pharmacology","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":6.8,"publicationDate":"2025-02-20","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143466985","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Engineered pulmonary artery tissues for measuring contractility, drug testing and disease modelling.","authors":"Adam L Fellows, Kate Quigley, Venus Leung, Alexander J Ainscough, Martin R Wilkins, Harry Barnett, David Miller, Manuel Mayr, Beata Wojciak-Stothard","doi":"10.1111/bph.17462","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/bph.17462","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background and purpose: </strong>Vasoreactivity of pulmonary arteries regulates blood flow through the lungs. Excessive constriction of these vessels contributes to pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH), a progressive and incurable condition, resulting in right heart failure. The search for new and improved drug treatments is hampered by laboratory models that do not reproduce the vasoactive behaviour of healthy and diseased human arteries.</p><p><strong>Experimental approach: </strong>We have developed an innovative technique for producing miniature, three-dimensional arterial structures that allow proxy evaluation of human pulmonary artery contractility. These \"engineered pulmonary artery tissues\" or \"EPATs\" are fabricated by suspending human pulmonary artery vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs) in fibrin hydrogels between pairs of silicone posts, located on custom-made racks, in 24-well culture plates.</p><p><strong>Key results: </strong>EPATs exhibit rapid, robust and reproducible contraction responses to vasoconstrictors (KCl, ET-1, U46619) as well as relaxation responses to clinically approved PAH vasodilatory drugs that target several signalling pathways, such as bosentan, epoprostenol, selexipag and imatinib. EPATs composed of pulmonary artery VSMCs from PAH patients exhibit enhanced contraction to vasoconstrictors and relaxation in response to vasodilators. We also demonstrate the incorporation of endothelial cells into EPATs for the measurement of endothelium-dependent dilatory responses.</p><p><strong>Conclusion and implications: </strong>We demonstrate the capacity and suitability of EPATs for studying the contractile behaviour of human arterial cells and preclinical drug testing. This novel biomimetic platform has the potential to dramatically improve our understanding and treatment of cardiovascular disease.</p>","PeriodicalId":9262,"journal":{"name":"British Journal of Pharmacology","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":6.8,"publicationDate":"2025-02-20","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143467004","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Novel drugs approved by the EMA, the FDA and the MHRA in 2024: A year in review","authors":"Stavros Topouzis,&nbsp;Andreas Papapetropoulos,&nbsp;Steve P. H. Alexander,&nbsp;Miriam Cortese-Krott,&nbsp;Dave A. Kendall,&nbsp;Kirill Martemyanov,&nbsp;Claudio Mauro,&nbsp;Nithyanandan Nagercoil,&nbsp;Reynold A. Panettieri Jr,&nbsp;Hemal H. Patel,&nbsp;Rainer Schulz,&nbsp;Barbara Stefanska,&nbsp;Gary J. Stephens,&nbsp;Mauro M. Teixeira,&nbsp;Nathalie Vergnolle,&nbsp;Xin Wang,&nbsp;Péter Ferdinandy","doi":"10.1111/bph.17458","DOIUrl":"10.1111/bph.17458","url":null,"abstract":"<p>In the past year, the European Medicines Agency (EMA), the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) authorised 53 novel drugs. While the 2024 harvest is not as rich as in 2023, when 70 new chemical entities were approved, the number of ‘orphan’ drug authorisations in 2024 (21) is similar to that of 2023 (24), illustrating the dynamic development of therapeutics in areas of unmet need. The 2024 approvals of novel protein therapeutics (15) and advanced therapy medicinal products (ATMPs, 6) indicate a sustained trend also noticeable in the 2023 new drugs reviewed in this journal last year (16 and 11, respectively). Clearly, the most striking characteristic of the 2024 drug yield is the creative pharmacological design, which allows these medicines to employ a novel approach to target a disease. Some notable examples are the first drug successfully using a ‘dock-and-block’ mechanism of inhibition (zenocutuzumab), the first approved drug for schizophrenia designed as an agonist of M₁/M₄ muscarinic receptors (xanomeline), the first biparatopic antibody (zanidatamab), binding two distinct epitopes of the <i>same</i> molecule, the first haemophilia therapy that instead of relying on external supplementation of clotting factors, restores Factor Xa activity by inhibiting TFPI (marstacimab), or the first ever authorised direct telomerase inhibitor (imetelstat) that reprogrammes the oncogenic drive of tumour cells. In addition, an impressive percentage of novel drugs were first in class (28 out of 53 or 53% of the total) and a substantial number can be considered disease agnostic, indicating the possibility of future approved extensions of their use for additional indications. The 2024 harvest demonstrates the therapeutic potential of innovative pharmacological design, which allows the effective targeting of intractable disorders and addresses crucial, unmet therapeutic needs.</p>","PeriodicalId":9262,"journal":{"name":"British Journal of Pharmacology","volume":"182 7","pages":"1416-1445"},"PeriodicalIF":6.8,"publicationDate":"2025-02-19","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/bph.17458","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143457095","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"TREM2 activation reduces white matter injury via PI3K/Akt/GSK-3β signalling after intracerebral haemorrhage.","authors":"Yuan Zhang, You Shi, Lin Wang, Zhao Li, Yingwen Wang, Jin Yan, Xiaochuan Sun, Qing Luo, Lin Li","doi":"10.1111/bph.17475","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/bph.17475","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>White matter injury (WMI) considerably exacerbates the prognosis following intracerebral haemorrhage (ICH). While the triggering receptor on myeloid cells 2 (TREM2) is recognized for its neuroprotective roles in a range of neurological disorders through the modulation of neuroinflammation, phagocytosis, promoting cell survival, its specific function in WMI after ICH has yet to be fully elucidated.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>This study involved inducing ICH in mice through autologous blood injection. Neurological functions were tested via behavioural assessments and electrophysiological recordings. WMI was examined using immunofluorescence, Luxol fast blue staining, MRI and transmission electron microscopy. Microglia were isolated and analysed using real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR). Microglia depletion was achieved with PLX3397, primary cultures of microglia and oligodendrocytes were investigated.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>The activation of TREM2 resulted in improved neurological outcomes after ICH, correlated with reduced WMI, demonstrated by decreased white matter loss in the corpus striatum, reduced damage to the nodes of Ranvier, and better preservation of myelin and white matter tract integrity. These neuroprotective effects were attributed to changes in microglial states mediated via the PI3K/Akt/GSK-3β signalling pathway. However, the neuroprotective advantages conferred by TREM2 activation were negated in TREM2 KO mice, either through microglia depletion or inhibition of PI3K.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>This research is the first to illustrate that TREM2 activation mitigates WMI following ICH through a microglia-dependent mechanism involving the PI3K/Akt/GSK-3β pathway. TREM2 represents a potential therapeutic target for ICH.</p>","PeriodicalId":9262,"journal":{"name":"British Journal of Pharmacology","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":6.8,"publicationDate":"2025-02-18","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143447903","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Imatinib aggravates pressure-overload-induced right ventricle failure via JNK/Runx2 pathway.","authors":"Xiaohui Zeng, Zhuoji Ma, Shanshan Wen, Liang Zhou, Wanxian Hong, Zhixiong Wu, Chunxian Cen, Qianwen Bai, Shangwei Ding, Xin Chen, Jian Wang, Lingdan Chen, Wenju Lu, Tao Wang","doi":"10.1111/bph.70006","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/bph.70006","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background and purpose: </strong>Right ventricular (RV) function is the key prognostic determinant of pulmonary hypertension (PH). In PH patients, imatinib treatment decreases pulmonary vascular resistance and improves exercise capacity, but does not change mortality or duration to clinical worsening. Imatinib has been reported to be cardiotoxic in the left heart. We hypothesise that imatinib damages the pressure overloaded RV via its direct effects within the heart, which may counteract its therapeutic effects in haemodynamic improvement of PH.</p><p><strong>Experimental approach: </strong>A pulmonary arterial banding (PAB) rat model with fixed pulmonary artery narrowing was performed to avoid changes in RV afterload.</p><p><strong>Key results: </strong>In PAB rats, imatinib treatment decreased the survival rate and exacerbated RV dysfunction, myocardial hypertrophy, apoptosis and fibrosis. In vitro, imatinib increased cardiomyocyte hypertrophy and did not change cardiac fibroblasts activation; however, imatinib-treated conditioned medium from cardiomyocytes promoted fibroblast activation. Mechanistically, imatinib increased the phosphorylation of c-jun N-terminal kinase (JNK) and the expression of RUNX family transcription factor 2 (Runx2), and subsequently promoted the transcription of thrombospondin 4 (THBS4) and connective tissue growth factor (CTGF) in RV cardiomyocytes. Finally, SP600125, a JNK inhibitor, significantly alleviated imatinib-induced RV failure in PAB rats and enhanced the effects of imatinib on RV function improvement in SU5416 + hypoxia-induced PH rats without affecting pulmonary artery narrowing.</p><p><strong>Conclusion and implications: </strong>We demonstrate for the first time that imatinib aggravates RV failure under pressure overload through JNK/Runx2 pathway, and JNK inhibition improves the therapeutic effects of imatinib on RV function in PH.</p>","PeriodicalId":9262,"journal":{"name":"British Journal of Pharmacology","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":6.8,"publicationDate":"2025-02-18","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143448444","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}