Anti-inflammatory effect of resveratrol in human coronary arterial endothelial cells via induction of autophagy: implication for the treatment of Kawasaki disease

Background: Kawasaki disease (KD) is an acute febrile vasculitis in childhood, which is the leading cause of acquired heart disease in children. If untreated, KD can result in coronary aneurysms in 25% of patients, and even under intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIG) treatment, 10-20% of children will have IVIG resistance and increased risk of developing coronary arteritis complication. Additional therapies should be explored to decrease the incidence of coronary artery lesions and improve the prognosis in KD. Autophagy has been reported to play a critical role in a variety of heart diseases. Resveratrol (RSV) confers cardio protection during ischemia and reperfusion in rats via activation of autophagy. Serum TNF-alpha levels are elevated in KD, which might activate the endothelial cells to express intercellular adhesion molecule-1 (ICAM-1), vascular cellular adhesion molecule-1(VCAM-1), inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) and IL-1 beta. Methods: Human coronary arterial endothelial cells (HCAECs) were either untreated or treated by TNF-alpha 10 ng/ml for 2 h in the presence or absence of RSV or autophagy-related protein 16-like 1 (Atg16L1) siRNA. Total RNA was analyzed by real-time quantitative PCR for ICAM-1, VCAM-1, iNOS and IL-1 beta mRNA expressions. The involvement of autophagy proteins was investigated by Western blot. Results: Pretreatment with resveratrol significantly inhibited TNF-alpha-induced ICAM-1, iNOS and IL-1 beta mRNA expression in HCAECs. Western blot revealed the enhanced autophagy proteins LC3B and Atg16L1 expression by RSV. The suppressive effects of RSV were obviously counteracted by Atg16L1 siRNA. Conclusions: We demonstrated RSV had anti-inflammatory effects on HCAECs via induction of autophagy. Our results suggest that resveratrol may modulate the inflammatory response of coronary artery in KD and explore the role of autophagy in the pathogenesis and alternative therapy of coronary arterial lesions in KD.