Inhibition of autophagy prevents cardiac dysfunction at early stages of cardiomyopathy in Bag3-deficient hearts

The HSP70 co-chaperone BAG3 targets unfolded proteins to degradation via chaperone assisted selective autophagy (CASA), thereby playing pivotal roles in the proteostasis of adult cardiomyocytes (CMs). However, the complex functions of BAG3 for regulating autophagy in cardiac disease are not completely understood. Here, we demonstrate that conditional inactivation of Bag3 in murine CMs leads to age-dependent dysregulation of autophagy, associated with progressive cardiomyopathy. Surprisingly, Bag3-deficient CMs show increased canonical and non-canonical autophagic flux in the juvenile period when first signs of cardiac dysfunction appear, but reduced autophagy during later stages of the disease. Juvenile Bag3-deficient CMs are characterized by decreased levels of soluble proteins involved in synchronous contraction of the heart, including the gap junction protein Connexin 43 (CX43). Reiterative administration of chloroquine (CQ), an inhibitor of canonical and non-canonical autophagy, but not inactivation of Atg5, restores normal concentrations of soluble cardiac proteins in juvenile Bag3-deficient CMs without an increase of detergent-insoluble proteins, leading to complete recovery of early-stage cardiac dysfunction in Bag3-deficient mice. We conclude that loss of Bag3 in CMs leads to age-dependent differences in autophagy and cardiac dysfunction. Increased non-canonical autophagic flux in the juvenile period removes soluble proteins involved in cardiac contraction, leading to early-stage cardiomyopathy, which is prevented by reiterative CQ treatment.

• Maroli, G.
• Schänzer, A.
• Günther, S.
• Garcia-Gonzalez, C.
• Rupp, S.
• Schlierbach, H.
• Chen, Y.
• Graumann, J.
• Wietelmann, A.
• Kim, J.
• Braun, T.