CONICET | Buscador de Institutos y Recursos Humanos

Previous results from our laboratory showed that phosphorylation of ryanodine receptor-2 (RyR2) by Ca2+ calmodulin-dependent kinase II (CaMKII) was a critical but not the unique event responsible for the production of reperfusion induced arrhythmogenesis, suggesting the existence of other mechanisms cooperating in an additive way to produce these rhythm alterations. Oxidative stress is a prominent feature of ischemia/reperfusion injury. Both, CaMKII and RyR2 are proteins susceptible to be altered by redox modifications. This study was designed to elucidate whether CaMKII and RyR2 redox changes occur during reperfusion and whether these changes are involved in the genesis of arrhythmias. Langendorff perfused hearts from rats or transgenic mice with genetic ablation of CaMKII phosphorylation site on RyR2 (S2814A) were subjected to ischemia-reperfusion in presence or absence of a free radical scavenger (MPG) or inhibitors of NADPH oxidase and nitric oxide synthase. Left ventricular contractile parameters and monophasic action potentials were recorded. Oxidation and phosphorylation of CaMKII and RyR2 were assessed. Increased oxidation of CaMKII during reperfusion had no consequences on the level of RyR2 phosphorylation. Avoiding the reperfusion-induced thiol oxidation of RyR2 with MPG produced a reduction in the number of arrhythmias and improved the contractile recovery. Conversely, selective prevention of S-nitrosylation and S-glutathionylation of RyR2 was associated to higher number of arrhythmias and impaired contractility. In S2814A mice, treatment with MPG further reduced the incidence of arrhythmias. Taken together the results suggest that redox modification of RyR2 synergistically with CaMKII phosphorylation modulate reperfusion arrhythmias.