A direct requirement of nuclear factor-κB for suppression of apoptosis in ventricular myocytes

Abstract

Nuclear factor-κB (NF-κB) is a ubiquitously expressed cellular factor regulated by the cytoplasmic factor inhibitor protein κBα (IκBα). Activation of NF-κB by cytokines, including tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), requires the phosphorylation and degradation of IκBα. An anti-apoptotic role for NF-κB has recently been suggested. In the present study, we ascertained whether death-promoting signals and apoptosis mediated by TNF-α are suppressed by NF-κB in postnatal ventricular myocytes. Stimulation of myocytes with TNF-α resulted in a 12.1-fold increase ( P < 0.01) in NF-κB-dependent gene transcription and DNA binding compared with controls. This was accompanied by a corresponding increase in the NF-κB target protein A20 as determined by Western blot analysis. Vital staining revealed that TNF-α was not cytotoxic to myocytes and did not provoke apoptosis. Adenovirus-mediated delivery of a nonphosphorylatable form of IκBα to inactivate NF-κB prevented TNF-α-stimulated NF-κB-dependent gene transcription and nuclear NF-κB DNA binding. Importantly, myocytes stimulated with TNF-α and defective for NF-κB activation resulted in a 2.2-fold increase ( P < 0.001) in apoptosis. To our knowledge, the data provide the first indication that a functional NF-κB signaling pathway is crucial for suppressing death-promoting signals mediated by TNF-α in ventricular myocytes.