Inhibitory effects of antisense oligonucleotides targeting connective tissue growth factor mRNA on the proliferation and collagen synthesis of cardiac fibroblasts

AIM: To observe the effect of AngⅡ on the ex pression of connective tissue growth factor (CTGF) in cultured cardiac fibroblas t (CFs), the antisense oligonucleotides (ASOND) was used to investigate whether CTGF is necessary for the proliferation and collagen synthesis of CFs. METHODS: CFs of SD rats were isolated and cultured. The proliferation and collagen synthesis of CFs were a ssessed by MTT assay and measuring hydroxyproline, respectively. The expression of CTGF mRNA and protein were detected by reverse-transcription PCR (RT-PCR) and Western blotting, respectively. RESULTS: AngⅡ could significantly increase the expression of CT GF both at mRNA and protein level in a dose and time-dependent manner (P0. 01). The MTT A value, the synthesis of collagen and the expression of CTGF i n AS OND group were all obviously lower than in AngⅡ group (P0.01). There was no significantly difference among AngⅡ group, sense OND group and missense ON D group (P0.05). CONCLUSION: It indicates that CTGF is involved in the process of myocardial fibrosis induced by AngⅡ, which may be a target for the treatment o f cardiac fibrosis.