Increased mitochondrial free Ca2+ during ischemia is suppressed, but not eliminated by, germline deletion of the mitochondrial Ca2+ uniporter

Mitochondrial Ca2+ overload is proposed to regulate cell death via opening of the mitochondrial permeability transition pore. It is hypothesized that inhibition of the mitochondrial Ca2+ uniporter (MCU) will prevent Ca2+ accumulation during ischemia/reperfusion and thereby reduce cell death. To address this, we evaluate mitochondrial Ca2+ in ex-vivo-perfused hearts from germline MCU-knockout (KO) and wild-type (WT) mice using transmural spectroscopy. Matrix Ca2+ levels are measured with a genetically encoded, red fluorescent Ca2+ indicator (R-GECO1) using an adeno-associated viral vector (AAV9) for delivery. Due to the pH sensitivity of R-GECO1 and the known fall in pH during ischemia, hearts are glycogen depleted to decrease the ischemic fall in pH. At 20 min of ischemia, there is significantly less mitochondrial Ca2+ in MCU-KO hearts compared with MCU-WT controls. However, an increase in mitochondrial Ca2+ is present in MCU-KO hearts, suggesting that mitochondrial Ca2+ overload during ischemia is not solely dependent on MCU.

Monitoring mitochondrial calcium and metabolism in the beating MCU-KO heart

Optical methods for measuring intracellular ions including Ca2+ revolutionized our understanding of signal transduction. However, these methods are not extensively applied to intact organs due to issues including inner filter effects, motion, and available probes. Mitochondrial Ca2+ is postulated to regulate cell energetics and death pathways that are best studied in an intact organ. Here, we develop a method to optically measure mitochondrial Ca2+ and demonstrate its validity for mitochondrial Ca2+ and metabolism using hearts from wild-type mice and mice with germline knockout of the mitochondria calcium uniporter (MCU-KO). We previously reported that germline MCU-KO hearts do not show an impaired response to adrenergic stimulation. We find that these MCU-KO hearts do not take up Ca2+, consistent with no alternative Ca2+ uptake mechanisms in the absence of MCU. This approach can address the role of mitochondrial Ca2+ to the myriad of functions attributed to alterations in mitochondrial Ca2+.

Abstract 284: Loss of Micu3 Confers Cardioprotection Against Cardiac Injury

Background: Mitochondrial calcium flux and signaling is integral to cardiac function and contraction. However, during pathologic conditions such as ischemic/reperfusion injury, mitochondrial calcium overload can induce the opening of the mitochondrial permeability transitioning pore (PTP), resulting in the collapse of mitochondrial membrane potential, ATP depletion, and generation of reactive oxygen species, all together leading to cell death. Hence, modulation of mitochondrial calcium and inhibition of the PTP is a promising target for cardioprotection and prevention of cardiomyocyte death. The mitochondrial calcium uniporter (MCU) complex mediates rapid mitochondrial calcium uptake. MICU3 is a regulator of the MCU complex and has been shown to be a highly potent stimulator of MCU-dependent calcium uptake in neuronal cells. We found that MICU3 is expressed in hearts and we therefore investigated the role of MICU3 in the heart. We examined the role of MICU3 in the development of hypertrophy and in a separate study we examined the response to ischemic-reperfusion (I/R) injury. Given its role in regulating mitochondrial calcium uptake, we hypothesized that loss of MICU3 confers protection against cardiac injury.

Methods: Mice with global deletion of Micu3 (Micu3 -/- ) were created utilizing CRISPR-Cas9 technology. Adult knockout and littermate wild type mice were treated with Isoproterenol (15mg/kg/day) for two weeks to induce hypertrophy. Echocardiograms were performed at baseline and after treatment to assess changes in left ventricular size and function. I/R injury was studied using Langendorff ex vivo perfused heart system, exposing knockout and wild type hearts to 20 minutes of ischemia and 90 minutes of reperfusion. Hemodynamic data and infarct size were collected and compared. Student t-test and 2-way ANOVA were used for statistical analysis.

Result: Micu3 -/- mice had normal cardiac function at baseline. There was no sex difference in cardiac function. Micu3 -/- mice continued to show normal function after 2 weeks of treatment with Isoproterenol, whereas wild type mice exhibited depressed function (median FS 35% vs. 24% p = 0.0001, EF 64% vs. 50% p = 0.0001). Wild type mice developed LV dilation from baseline (median 4.15mm vs. 4.57mm, p = 0.0014), whereas LV dimension remained stable in Micu3 -/- mice (median 4.12mm vs. 4.18mm, p= 0.9892). Micu3 - /- mice were also protected from I/R injury. Compared to wild types, Micu3 -/- hearts demonstrated less contractile dysfunction at end reperfusion (median rate pressure product 62% vs. 41%, p = 0.002), and significantly smaller infarct size (median 33% vs. 53%, p = 0.0001).

Conclusion: Loss of MICU3 confers cardioprotection against ischemic reperfusion injury and Isoproterenol induced cardiac dysfunction.

Abstract 409: Investigating the Role of the Mitochondrial Calcium Uniporter (mcu) in Calcium Regulation of Cardiac Mitochondria Using Transmural Spectroscopy and an Integrating Sphere

Cardiac mitochondria uptake calcium through the mitochondrial calcium uniporter (MCU). To better understand the role of MCU and mitochondrial calcium in regulating heart physiology and pathophysiology, we developed a method to measure mitochondrial matrix calcium in beating, perfused hearts. Langendorff perfusing hearts are loaded with 4.5 uM rhod-2-AM at 30°C and then perfused at 37°C to washout uncleaved dye. We determined that rhod-2 localized primarily to the mitochondria under our loading conditions, as shown by loading in a heart expressing a GFP-tagged mitochondrial outer membrane protein and analyzing heart slices under super resolution microscopy. Further, addition of Mn 2+ , which quenches cytosolic rhod-2, has little effect on rhod-2 signal. We insert an optical catheter with both white light and 532nm laser into the left ventricle and interleaved the collection of spectra from both light sources. The perfused heart is center mounted in an integrating sphere for spectra collection. The light passes through the ventricle and reflects off the integrating sphere resulting in a near uniform sampling of the transmitted light. Spectral properties from both light sources are determined using a rapid scanning spectrophotometer. Myoglobin oxygenation, cytochrome redox state, and rhod-2 loading are determined by white light absorbance. Ca 2+ bound rhod-2 emission is determined by removing background tissue effects from laser emission spectra and normalizing to tissue absorbance. Using this method we are able to measure changes in Ca 2+ and cytochromes during treatments such as isoproterenol and ischemia-reperfusion. The use of an integrating sphere transmural spectroscopy provides us an unique method to study mitochondrial Ca 2+ signaling in perfused mouse heart loaded with Rhod-2.