Gambogic acid suppresses pressure overload cardiac hypertrophy in rats

Cardiac hypertrophy is a common response of the heart to a variety of cardiovascular stimuli. Pathological cardiac hypertrophy eventually leads to heart failure. Gambogic acid (GA) is a main active ingredient isolated from the gamboge resin of Garcinia hanburyi trees and has potent anti-tumor and anti-inflammatory effects that are associated with inhibition of the NF-κB pathway. We and others recently reported that GA can significantly inhibit the function of the proteasome with much less toxicity than conventional proteasome inhibitors. The increasing lines of evidence indicate that the inhibition of the proteasome can promote the regression of cardiac hypertrophy induced by pressure overload through the blockade of the NF-κB pathway. In the present study, we examined the effect of GA on pressure overload or isoproterenol infusion induced cardiac hypertrophy and fibrosis, and changes in myocardial NF-κB signaling. We observed that the heart weight/body weight ratio, the size of cardiomyocytes, interstitial fibrosis, and the reactivation of fetal genes (α-SK-actin and BNP mRNA) were markedly increased by abdominal aorta constriction (AAC) or isoproterenol infusion (ISO), all of which were effectively inhibited by GA treatment. Furthermore, GA treatment abolished proteasome chymotrypsin-like activity increases induced by AAC or ISO, led to increased myocardial IκB protein, decreased NF-κB p65 subunit levels in the nuclear fraction, decreased NF-κB DNA-binding activity, and reduced IL2 levels in the myocardium of rats subject to AAC or ISO. In conclusion, GA treatment can suppress cardiac hypertrophy and fibrosis induced by pressure overload or isoproterenol possibly through the inhibition of the proteasome and the NF-κB pathway, suggesting that GA treatment may provide a new strategy to treat cardiac hypertrophy.