Cardiomyocyte-specific overexpression of syndecan-4 in mice results in activation of calcineurin-NFAT signalling and exacerbated cardiac hypertrophy

Background Cardiomyocyte hypertrophy is a hallmark of cardiac dysfunction in patients with aortic stenosis (AS), and can be triggered by left ventricular (LV) pressure overload in mice by aortic banding (AB). Syndecan-4 is a transmembrane heparan sulphate proteoglycan which is found increased in the myocardium of AS patients and AB mice. The role of syndecan-4 in cardiomyocyte hypertrophy is not well understood. Purpose of the study We developed mice with cardiomyocyte-specific overexpression of syndecan-4 ( Sdc4-Tg ) and subjected these to AB to examine the role of syndecan-4 in hypertrophy and activation of the pro-hypertrophic calcineurin-NFAT signalling pathway. Methods and results Sdc4-Tg mice showed exacerbated cardiac remodelling upon AB compared to wild type (WT). At 2–6 weeks post-AB, Sdc4-Tg and WT mice showed similar hypertrophic growth, while at 20 weeks post-AB, exacerbated hypertrophy and dysfunction were evident in Sdc4-Tg mice. After cross-breeding of Sdc4-Tg mice with NFAT-luciferase reporter mice, we found increased NFAT activation in Sdc4-Tg hearts after AB. Immunoprecipitation showed that calcineurin bound to syndecan-4 in Sdc4-Tg hearts. Isolated cardiomyocytes from Sdc4-Tg mice showed alterations in Ca 2+ fluxes, suggesting that syndecan-4 regulated Ca 2+ levels, and thereby, activating the syndecan-4-calcineurin complex resulting in NFAT activation and hypertrophic growth. Similarly, primary cardiomyocyte cultures from neonatal rats showed increased calcineurin-NFAT-dependent hypertrophic growth upon viral Sdc4 overexpression. Conclusion Our study of mice with cardiomyocyte-specific overexpression of Sdc4 have revealed that syndecan-4 is important for activation of the Ca 2+ -dependent calcineurin-NFAT signalling pathway, hypertrophic remodelling and dysfunction in cardiomyocytes in response to pressure overload.