We reported previously that although there is disruption of coordinated
cardiac hypertrophy and angiogenesis in transition to
heart failure,
matrix metalloproteinase (MMP)-9 induced antiangiogenic factors play a vital role in this process. Previous studies have shown the cardioprotective role of
hydrogen sulfide (H₂S) in various
cardiac diseases, but its role during transition from compensatory
hypertrophy to
heart failure is yet to be unveiled. We hypothesize that H₂S induces MMP-2 activation and inhibits MMP-9 activation, thus promoting angiogenesis, and mitigates transition from compensatory
cardiac hypertrophy to
heart failure. To verify this, aortic banding (AB) was created to mimic pressure overload in wild-type (WT) mice, which were treated with
sodium hydrosulfide (
NaHS, H₂S donor) in
drinking water and compared with untreated control mice. Mice were studied at 3 and 8 wk. In the
NaHS-treated AB 8 wk group, the expression of MMP-2, CD31, and
VEGF was increased while the expression of MMP-9,
endostatin,
angiostatin, and tissue inhibitor of
matrix metalloproteinase (TIMP)-3 was decreased compared with untreated control mice. There was significant reduction in
fibrosis in
NaHS-treated groups. Echocardiograph and pressure-volume data revealed improvement of cardiac function in
NaHS-treated groups over untreated controls. These results show that H₂S by inducing MMP-2 promotes
VEGF synthesis and angiogenesis while it suppresses MMP-9 and
TIMP-3 levels, inhibits antiangiogenic factors, reduces intracardiac
fibrosis, and mitigates transition from compensatory
hypertrophy to
heart failure.