Interaction of sex hormone receptors and calcium handling proteins in the left ventricle of patients with heart failure

Heart failure (HF) is one of the leading causes of death from cardiovascular disease among adults worldwide. The role of sex hormone receptors in the pathogenesis of HF and their regulatory mechanisms remain unclear. This study focused on investigating the localization and expression of sex hormone receptors (ERα, ERβ, AR and PR) and calcium handling proteins (SERCA2a and Cav1.2) in the left ventricle (LV) tissues of patients with HF, and to investigate their interactions. The LV tissues of HF patients were collected, and the localization of sex hormone receptors and calcium handling proteins was detected by immunofluorescence and immunohistochemistry. Western blotting was performed to study the expression levels of sex hormone receptors and calcium handling proteins. The interactions between these proteins were identified by immunofluorescence co-location and immunoprecipitation respectively. Compared with the control group, the expression levels of sex hormone receptors and calcium handling proteins in HF patients were significantly decreased. There was co-localization and interaction between protein ERα and Cav1.2, protein AR and SERCA2a, respectively. In summary, sex hormone receptors may be involved in regulating the progression of HF by interacting with calcium handling proteins.