Thymoquinone Attenuates Myocardial Ischemia/Reperfusion Injury Through Activation of SIRT1 Signaling.

BACKGROUND/AIMS: Myocardial ischemia/reperfusion (MI/R) injury is a leading factor responsible for damage in myocardial infarction, resulting in additional injury to cardiac tissues involved in oxidative stress, inflammation, and apoptosis. Thymoquinone (TQ), the main constituent of Nigella sativa L. seeds, has been reported to possess various biological activities. However, few reports regarding myocardial protection are available at present. Therefore, this study was conducted aiming to investigate the protective effect of TQ against MI/R injury and to clarify its potential mechanism.

METHODS: MI/R injury models of isolated rat hearts and neonatal rat cardiomyocytes were established. The Langendorff isolated perfused heart system, triphenyltetrazolium chloride staining, gene transfection, TransLaser scanning confocal microscopy, and western blotting were employed to evaluate the cardioprotection effect of TQ against MI/R injury.

RESULTS: Compared with the MI/R group, TQ treatment could remarkably improve left ventricular function, decrease myocardial infarct size and production of lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), and attenuate mitochondrial oxidative damage by elevating superoxide dismutase (SOD) activity and reducing production of hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) and malonaldehyde (MDA). Moreover, the cardioprotective effect of TQ was accompanied by up-regulated expression of SIRT1 and inhibition of p53 acetylation. Additionally, TQ treatment could also enhance mitochondrial function and reduce the number of apoptotic cardiomyocytes. Nonetheless, the cardioprotective effect of TQ could be mitigated by SIRT1 inhibitor sirtinol and SIRT1 siRNA, respectively, which was achieved through inhibition of the SIRT1 signaling pathway.

CONCLUSIONS: The findings in this study demonstrate that TQ is efficient in attenuating MI/R injury through activation of the SIRT1 signaling pathway, which can thus reduce mitochondrial oxidative stress damage and cardiomyocyte apoptosis.