Angiogenic effect of meis1 overexpression in infarcted sheep heart

LÓPEZ, AYELÉN EMILCE; BAUZÁ, MARÍA DEL ROSARIO; SIMONIN, ALEJANDRO; SCHARN, AGUSTINA; CASTRO, ARACELI; SILVESTRO, CINTIA; CROTTOGINI, ALBERTO; BELAICH, MARIANO N.; OLEA, FERNANDA DANIELA; LOCATELLI, PAOLA

Mar del Plata

Congreso; Reunión Anual de Sociedades de Biociencias.; 2022

Angiogenesis plays an essential role in post-myocardial infarction cardiac regeneration by supplying blood perfusion to the infarcted heart and guiding cardiomyocyte (CM) migration. There is controversy regarding the pro or anti-angiogenic role of the transcription factor meis1. Our previous in vitro results in rat indicate that meis1 is an angiogenic gene. Objectives: To inject the adult ovine infarcted heart with a baculoviral vector overexpressing meis1 (Bv.Meis1), assessits effects and the expression of angiogenic genes. Methods: 12 young adult sheep with acute myocardial infarction (AMI) received 10 intramyocardial injections of 0.2 ml in the infarct border zone containing Bv.Meis1 or Bv.Null. Seven days after AMI, the animals were euthanized, and tissue samples of the injected infarct border zone were harvested. Angiogenic gene expression was assessed by RT-qPCR. Tissue samples of the infarct border zone underwent immunohistochemistry to quantify capillary and arteriolar densities. Results: Angiogenic gene expression such as angiogenin, igf and hgf were increased in infarcted sheep treated with Bv.Meis1 (angiogenin fold increase: 2.547±1.760 Bv.Meis1 vs. 1.257±0.8104 Bv.Null, p