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Preventing the ravages of ROS
Ligand-dependent activation of the G protein–coupled estrogen receptor (GPER) has been reported to confer cardiovascular benefits. However, Meyer et al. found that genetic absence of Gper conferred protection from cardiovascular pathologies associated with aging and hypertension. GPER activity was required to increase the abundance of the enzyme Nox1 in vascular smooth muscle cells, blood vessels, and myocardium, and was associated with enhanced production of tissue-damaging superoxide. Aged mice that were deficient in Gper developed much less cardiac fibrosis and hypertrophy and also retained greater cardiovascular function. In addition, a pharmacological inhibitor of GPER reduced blood pressure, superoxide production, and Nox1 abundance in hypertensive mice. Thus, inhibitors of GPER are potential therapies for cardiovascular diseases and conditions characterized by excessive superoxide generation.
Abstract
Pharmacological activation of the heptahelical G protein–coupled estrogen receptor (GPER) by selective ligands counteracts multiple aspects of cardiovascular disease. We thus expected that genetic deletion or pharmacological inhibition of GPER would further aggravate such disease states, particularly with age. To the contrary, we found that genetic ablation of Gper in mice prevented cardiovascular pathologies associated with aging by reducing superoxide (⋅O2−) formation by NADPH oxidase (Nox) specifically through reducing the expression of the Nox isoform Nox1. Blocking GPER activity pharmacologically with G36, a synthetic, small-molecule, GPER-selective blocker (GRB), decreased Nox1 abundance and ⋅O2− production to basal amounts in cells exposed to angiotensin II and in mice chronically infused with angiotensin II, reducing arterial hypertension. Thus, this study revealed a role for GPER activity in regulating Nox1 abundance and associated ⋅O2−-mediated structural and functional damage that contributes to disease pathology. Our results indicated that GRBs represent a new class of drugs that can reduce Nox abundance and activity and could be used for the treatment of chronic disease processes involving excessive ⋅O2− formation, including arterial hypertension and heart failure.
