Granulocyte colony-stimulating factor partially repairs the damage provoked by Trypanosoma cruzi in murine myocardium

Background: The hallmark of Trypanosoma cruzi infection is cardiomyopathy that leads to end-stage heart failure. We investigated whether G-CSF, known to induce heart tissue repair by bone marrow stem cell mobilization,ameliorates T. cruzi-induced myocarditis. Methods and results: T. cruzi-infected C...

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Bibliographic Details
Authors: González, Mariela Natacha, Dey, Nilay, Garg, Nisha J., Postan, Miriam
Format: article
Status:Published version
Publication Date:2013
Country:Argentina
Institution:Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas
Repository:CONICET Digital (CONICET)
Language:English
OAI Identifier:oai:ri.conicet.gov.ar:11336/24595
Online Access:http://hdl.handle.net/11336/24595
Access Level:Open access
Keyword:Trypanosoma cruzi
Granulocyte-colony stimulating factor
Stem cell
Cardiac repair
Chagas disease
https://purl.org/becyt/ford/3.1
https://purl.org/becyt/ford/3
Description
Summary:Background: The hallmark of Trypanosoma cruzi infection is cardiomyopathy that leads to end-stage heart failure. We investigated whether G-CSF, known to induce heart tissue repair by bone marrow stem cell mobilization,ameliorates T. cruzi-induced myocarditis. Methods and results: T. cruzi-infected C3H/He mice were treated with G-CSF and monitored for parasite burden,BMSC mobilization, cytokine profile and cardiac remodeling. G-CSF increased the expression of CXCR4, CD34, and c-Kit, indicatingmobilization and migration of BMSC, some of which differentiated to cardiomyocytes as evidenced by increased levels of GATA4+/MEF2C+ cells and desmin expression in chagasic hearts. G-CSF enhanced amixed cytokine response (IL-10 + TGF-β > IFN-γ + TNF-α > IL-4) associated with increased heart inflammation and no beneficial effect on parasite control. Further, G-CSF controlled T. cruzi-induced extracellular-matrix alterations of collagens (Col I and Col llI), hydroxyproline, and glycosaminoglycan contents and promoted compensatory cardiac remodeling; however, these responses were not sufficient to control T. cruzi-induced cardiomyocyte atrophy. Benznidazole treatment prior to G-CSF resulted in the control of parasitism and parasite-induced inflammation, and subsequently, G-CSF was effective in executing the tissue repair, as evidenced by extracellular-matrix homeostasis and normalization of cardiomyocyte size in chagasic hearts. Conclusions: G-CSF treatment after T. cruzi infection enhanced migration and homing of BMSC, some of which differentiated to cardiomyocytes. Yet, G-CSF promoted a mixed (Treg > Th1 > Th2) immune response that contributed to persistent inflammation and limited improvement in cardiac homeostasis. Combinatorial therapy (BZ → G-CSF) was beneficial in arresting inflammatory processes and tissue damage in chagasic hearts.