αB-crystallin response to a pro-oxidant non-cytotoxic environment in murine cardiac cells: An “in vitro” and “in vivo” study

The αB-crystallin (HSPB5) protein is modulated in response to a wide variety of stressors generated by multiple physio-pathological conditions, sustained by reactive oxygen species (ROS) production. In cardiac muscle tissue, this protein regulates various cellular processes, such as protein degradation, apoptosis and the stabilization of cytoskeletal elements. In this work, we studied the role of HSPB5 expression, activation and localization in HL-1 murine cardiomyocytes exposed to pro-oxidant and non-cytotoxic H2O2 concentration, as well as in cardiac tissue isolated from mice following an acute, non-damaging endurance exercise. Our results demonstrated that HSPB5 is the most abundant HSP in both cardiac muscle tissue and HL-1 cells when compared to HSPB1 or HSPA1A (≈3–8 fold higher protein concentrations, p < 0.01). The acute exposure of cardiac muscle cells to sustainable level of H2O2 “in vitro” or to aerobic non-damaging exercise “in vivo” determined a fast and specific increase of HSPB5 phosphorylation (from 3 up to 25 fold increase, p < 0.01) correlated to an increase in lipid peroxidation (p < 0.05). In both experimental models, p-HSPB5 likely facilitated both the interaction with β-actin, desmin, and α-Filamin 1, the last one identified as new HSPB5 substrate in cardiac cells, as well as the sub-localization of HSPB5 within the same cellular compartment or the re-localization between compartments (i.e., nucleus and cytosol). Taken together, these data point out the role of “oxidative eustress” induced by physiological conditions in activating the molecular machinery devoted to cardiomyocytes’ protection and candidate HSPB5 as a putative molecular mediator for the health benefits induced in cardiac tissue by exercise training.