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Silybin induces endothelium-dependent vasodilation via TRPV4 channels in mouse mesenteric arteries

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Abstract

Silybin is a flavonolignan extracted from the seeds of Silybum marianum that has been used as a dietary supplement for treating hepatic diseases and components of metabolic syndrome such as diabetes, obesity and hypertension. Transient receptor potential vanilloid 4 (TRPV4) channels are Ca2+-permeable, nonselective cation channels that regulate vascular endothelial function and blood flow. However, the relationship between silybin and TRPV4 channels in small mesenteric arteries remains unknown. In our study, we carried out a molecular docking experiment by using Discovery Studio v3.5 to predict the binding of silybin to TRPV4. Activation of TRPV4 with silybin was detected via intracellular Ca2+ concentration ([Ca2+]i) measurement and patch clamp experiments. The molecular docking results showed that silybin was likely to bind to the ankyrin repeat domain of TPRV4. [Ca2+]i measurements in mesenteric arterial endothelial cells (MAECs) and TRPV4-overexpressing HEK293 (TRPV4–HEK293) cells demonstrated that silybin induced Ca2+ influx by activating TRPV4 channels. The patch clamp experiments indicated that in TRPV4–HEK293 cells, silybin induced TRPV4-mediated cation currents. In addition, in high-salt-induced hypertensive mice, oral administration of silybin decreased systolic blood pressure (SBP) and significantly improved the arterial dilatory response to acetylcholine. Our findings provide the first evidence that silybin could induce mesenteric endothelium-dependent vasodilation and reduce blood pressure in high-salt-induced hypertensive mice via TRPV4 channels, thereby revealing the potential effect of silybin on preventing endothelial dysfunction-related cardiovascular diseases.

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Acknowledgements

This work was fully supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China [81622007, 81960662, 81800430], the Chang Jiang Scholars Program [Q2015106], Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities [JUSRP51704A], the National First-Class Discipline Program of Food Science and Technology [JUFSTR20180101], Postdoctoral Research Funding Program of Jiangsu Province [2020Z427], Wuxi Health Commission [1286010241210430], Wuxi Health Commission grant no. M202044 and Foundation of Wuxi Science and Technology Bureau grant no. CSE31N1702.

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  1. These authors contributed equally: Xin Wen, Yidi Peng.

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Wuxi School of Medicine, Jiangnan University, Wuxi, China

    Xin Wen, Bohao Zheng, Shaying Yang, Jing Han, Fan Yu, Tingting Zhou, Li Geng & Lei Feng

  2. School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Jiangnan University, Wuxi, China

    Yidi Peng

  3. Department of Cardiology, Wuxi People’s Hospital Affiliated with Nanjing Medical University, Wuxi, China

    Zhiming Yu

  4. Wuxi Institute of Translational Medicine, Wuxi, China

    Zhiming Yu

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Wen, X., Peng, Y., Zheng, B. et al. Silybin induces endothelium-dependent vasodilation via TRPV4 channels in mouse mesenteric arteries. Hypertens Res 45, 1954–1963 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41440-022-01000-4

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