Pik3ip1 modulates cardiac hypertrophy by inhibiting PI3K pathway

Cardiac hypertrophy is an adaptive response to various physiological and pathological stimuli. Phosphoinositide-3 kinase (PI3K) is a highly conserved lipid kinase involved in physiological cardiac hypertrophy (PHH). PI3K interacting protein1 (Pik3ip1) shares homology with the p85 regulatory subunit of PI3K and is known to interact with the p110 catalytic subunit of PI3K, leading to attenuation of PI3K activity in liver and immune cells. However, the role of Pik3ip1 in the heart remains unknown. In the present study, the effects of Pik3ip1 on cardiac hypertrophy were examined. We found that the expression level of Pik3ip1 was markedly higher in cardiomyocytes than in fibroblasts. The interaction of Pik3ip1 with the p110a subunit of PI3K in the heart was identified by immunoprecipitation using neonatal rat cardiomyocytes (NRCM). Approximately 35% knockdown of Pik3ip1 was sufficient to induce myocardial hypertrophy. Pik3ip1 deficiency was shown to lead to activation of PI3K/protein kinase B (AKT)/ mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) signaling pathway, increasing protein synthesis and cell size. However, adenovirus-mediated overexpression of Pik3ip1 attenuated PI3K-mediated cardiac hypertrophy. Pik3ip1 was upregulated by PHH due to swimming training, but not by pathological cardiac hypertrophy (PAH) due to pressure-overload, suggesting that Pik3ip1 plays a compensatory negative role for PHH. Collectively, our results elucidate the mechanisms for the roles of Pik3ip1 in PI3K/AKT signaling pathway.