Anti-remodeling effects of xanthohumol-fortified beer in pulmonary arterial hypertension mediated by ERK and AKT inhibition

• Type: Article in International Scientific Journal
• Date: 2019

Authors

Ana Filipa Silva (Author) Other; Gabriel Faria-Costa (Author) Other; Fábio Sousa-Nunes (Author) Other; Manuel Filipe Santos (Author) Other; Manuel João Ferreira-Pinto (Author) Other; Delfim Duarte (Author) Other; Ilda Rodrigues (Author) Other; João Tiago Guimarães (Author) Other; Adelino Leite-Moreira (Author) Other; Daniel Moreira-Gonçalves (Author) FADEUP; Tiago Henriques-Coelho (Author) Other; Negrão, R (Author) FMUP

Journal

Title: Nutrients

Vol. 11

Pages: 583/1-583/16

ISSN: 2072-6643

Publisher: MDPI

Indexing

ISI Web of Knowledge - 13 Citations

Scopus - 13 Citations

Scientific classification

FOS: Social sciences

Other information

Authenticus ID: P-00M-VF4

DOI: 10.3390/nu11030583

Abstract (EN): Polyphenols present in some alcoholic beverages have been linked to beneficial effects in preventing cardiovascular diseases. Polyphenols found in beer with anti-proliferative and anti-cancer properties are appealing in the context of the quasi-malignant phenotype of pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH). Our purpose was to evaluate if the chronic ingestion of a xanthohumol-fortified beer (FB) would be able to modulate the pathophysiology of experimental PAH. Male Wistar rats with monocrotaline (MCT)-induced PAH (60 mg/kg) were allowed to drink either xanthohumol-fortified beer (MCT + FB) or 5.2% ethanol (MCT + SHAM) for a period 4 weeks. At the end of the protocol, cardiopulmonary exercise testing and hemodynamic recordings were performed, followed by sample collection for further analysis. FB intake resulted in a significant attenuation of the pulmonary vascular remodeling in MCT + FB animals. This improvement was paralleled with the downregulation in expression of proteins responsible for proliferation (ERK1/2), cell viability (AKT), and apoptosis (BCL-XL). Moreover, MCT + FB animals presented improved right ventricle (RV) function and remodeling accompanied by VEGFR-2 pathway downregulation. The present study demonstrates that a regular consumption of xanthohumol through FB modulates major remodeling pathways activated in experimental PAH.

Language: English

Type (Professor's evaluation): Scientific