Age-associated murine cardiac lesions are attenuated by the mitochondria-targeted antioxidant SkQ1

Age-related changes in mammalian hearts often result in cardiac hypertrophy and fibrosis that are preceded by inflammatory infiltration. In this paper, we show that lifelong treatment of BALB/c and C57BL/6 mice with the mitochondria-targeted antioxidant SkQ1 retards senescence-associated myocardial disease (cardiomyopathy), cardiac hypertrophy, and diffuse myocardial fibrosis. To investigate the molecular basis of the action of SkQ1, we have applied DNA microarray analysis. The global gene expression profile in heart tissues was not significantly affected by administration of SkQ1. However, we found some small but statistically significant modifications of the pathways related to cell-to-cell contact, adhesion, and leukocyte infiltration. Probably, SkQ1-induced decrease in leukocyte and mesenchymal cell adhesion and/or infiltration lead to a reduction in age-related inflammation and subsequent fibrosis. The data indicate a causative role of mitochondrial reactive oxygen species in cardiovascular aging and imply that SkQ1 has potential as a drug against age-related cardiac dysfunction.