Alpinetin alleviates sepsis-induced cardiomyopathy by suppressing serine/threonine protein phosphatase 1γ-mediated...

Sepsis-induced cardiomyopathy (SICM) affects over half of sepsis patients admitted to intensive care units and is a major contributor to mortality and circulatory shock. Despite incomplete understanding of its underlying mechanisms, effective pharmacological treatments for SICM are urgently needed. This study investigates the cardioprotective effects and underlying mechanism of the natural compound alpinetin in septic cardiomyopathy. We evaluated the impact of alpinetin on the overall survival of mice subjected to cecal ligation and puncture (CLP). Alpinetin significantly improved survival and reduced mortality in CLP-induced polymicrobial sepsis. It markedly attenuated intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS) accumulation and calcium influx in cardiomyocytes and prevented apoptosis induced by lipopolysaccharide (LPS) combined with interferon-γ (IFN-γ) stimulation. Elevated expression of serine/threonine protein phosphatase 1γ (PP1γ) was found to contribute to cardiomyocyte hypertrophy during sepsis. The role of PP1γ in septic cardiac injury was assessed through recombinant lentivirus-mediated overexpression and small interfering RNA knockdown in cardiomyocytes. PP1γ was upregulated in septic cardiomyocytes and positively correlated with the expression of the early hypertrophy marker atrial natriuretic peptide (ANP). Suppression of PP1γ effectively attenuated cardiomyocyte hypertrophy. Further investigation revealed an interaction between PP1γ and peroxiredoxin 1 (PRDX1). Alpinetin treatment significantly attenuated PP1γ upregulation and disrupted the PP1γ-PRDX1 interaction, which was associated with reduced ROS production and improved cardiac function, suggesting restoration of PRDX1-mediated antioxidant function. Molecular docking simulations further suggested a potential direct interaction between alpinetin and PP1γ, providing basis for future mechanistic studies. These findings suggest that alpinetin may represent a promising therapeutic strategy for septic cardiomyopathy.