Cardiac-Specific Overexpression of Caveolin-3 Induces Endogenous Cardiac Protection by Mimicking Ischemic Preconditioning

Abstract

Expression of caveolin-3 is both necessary and sufficient for cardiac protection, a conclusion that unites long-standing ultrastructural and molecular observations in the ischemic heart. The present results indicate that increased expression of caveolins, apparently via actions that depend on phosphoinositide 3-kinase, has the potential to protect hearts exposed to ischemia/reperfusion injury.