Changes in myocardial protein expression in pacing-induced canine heart failure

Canine rapid ventricular pacing produces a low output cardiomyopathic state which is similar to dilated cardiomyopathy. In this study dogs were paced at 245 beats per minute (bpm) for 3-4 weeks until signs of heart failure were apparent. Unpaced dogs were used as controls. A previous study identified myocardial protein changes in the pH region 4-7 following ventricular pacing by using two-dimensional electrophoresis (2-DE) (Heinke et al., Electrophoresis 1998 19, 2021-2030). Many of these proteins were associated with mitochondria, energy metabolism within the cardiomyocyte, the cytoskeleton and calcium cycling. The present study aimed to examine the proteins migrating in the more basic region of the 2-DE pattern using immobilised pH gradient 3-10 strips to separate myocardial proteins. The expression of 31 proteins was altered in the paced myocardium: 21 were decreased and 10 increased. Following the identification of 23 of these spots by either amino acid compositional analysis or peptide mass fingerprinting or a combination of both, we confirm that many of the proteins whose expression is altered following ventricular pacing are associated with the mitochondria and energy production within the cardiomyocyte, including creatine kinase M, triosephosphate isomerase, phosphoglycerate mutase, cytochrome c oxidase, cytochrome b5, hydroxymethyl glutaryl CoA synthase, myoglobin, and 3,2-trans-enoyl-CoA transferase. Additionally, the cytoskeletal protein actin was increased in the paced hearts. These results strongly support the notion that energy production is impaired and mitochondrial dysfunction is involved in the development of heart failure in the paced dog.