Natriuretic peptide receptors and heart failure: to B or not to B blocked?

PDE3 inhibition by C-type natriuretic peptide-induced cGMP enhances cAMP-mediated signaling in both non-failing and failing hearts

We have previously shown that the natriuretic peptide receptor B (NPR-B) agonist C-type natriuretic peptide (CNP) enhances cyclic adenosine 3´,5´-monophosphate (cAMP)-mediated signaling in failing hearts, through cyclic guanosine 3´,5´-monophosphate (cGMP)-mediated phosphodiesterase (PDE) 3 inhibition. As several signaling pathways are importantly changed in failing hearts, it could not be taken for granted that this crosstalk would be the same in non-failing hearts. Thus, we wanted to clarify to which extent this effect of CNP occurred also in non-failing hearts. Inotropic and lusitropic responses were measured in muscle strips and cGMP levels, localized cAMP levels, cAMP-PDE activity and mRNA levels were analyzed in isolated cardiomyocytes from left ventricles of non-failing and failing rat hearts. CNP increased cGMP and enhanced β₁- and β₂-adrenoceptor-mediated inotropic and β₁-adrenoceptor-mediated lusitropic responses, in non-failing and failing hearts. The NPR-A agonist brain natriuretic peptide (BNP) increased cGMP, but did not affect inotropic or lusitropic responses, indicating different compartmentation of cGMP from the two natriuretic peptide receptors. cAMP-PDE activity of PDE3 was concentration-dependently inhibited by cGMP with the same potency and to the same extent in non-failing and failing cardiomyocytes. CNP enhanced β₁-adrenoceptor-induced cAMP increase in living cardiomyocytes in the absence, but not in the presence of a PDE3 inhibitor indicating involvement of PDE3. In summary, CNP sensitizes cAMP-mediated signaling in non-failing as in failing hearts, via NPR-B-mediated increase of cGMP that inhibits the cAMP-PDE activity of PDE3.

Different compartmentation of responses to brain natriuretic peptide and C-type natriuretic peptide in failing rat ventricle

We previously found a negative inotropic (NIR) and positive lusitropic response (LR) to C-type natriuretic peptide (CNP) in the failing heart ventricle. In this study, we investigated and compared the functional responses to the natriuretic peptides (NPs), brain (BNP) and C-type natriuretic peptide (CNP), and relate them to cGMP regulation and effects on downstream targets. Experiments were conducted in left ventricular muscle strips and ventricular cardiomyocytes from Wistar rats with heart failure 6 weeks after myocardial infarction. As opposed to CNP, BNP did not cause an NIR or LR, despite increasing cGMP levels. The BNP-induced cGMP elevation was mainly and markedly regulated by phosphodiesterase (PDE) 2 and was only marginally increased by PDE3 or PDE5 inhibition. Combined PDE2, -3, and -5 inhibition failed to reveal any functional responses to BNP, despite an extensive cGMP elevation. BNP decreased, whereas CNP increased, the amplitude of the Ca(2+) transient. BNP did not increase phospholamban (PLB) or troponin I (TnI) phosphorylation, Ca(2+) extrusion rate constant, or sarcoplasmatic reticulum Ca(2+) load, whereas CNP did. Both BNP and CNP reduced the peak of the L-type Ca(2+) current. Cyclic GMP elevations by BNP and CNP in cardiomyocytes were additive, and the presence of BNP did not alter the NIR to CNP or the CNP-induced PLB and TnI phosphorylation. However, a small increase in the LR to maximal CNP was observed in the presence of BNP. In conclusion, different responses to cGMP generated by BNP and CNP suggest different compartmentation of the cGMP signal and different roles of the two NPs in the failing heart.