Impact of Fatty Acid Storage on Endothelial and Cardiac Metabolism and Function During Health and Disease
Files
Cherfaoui_45451900_2024.pdf
Closed access - Adobe PDF
- 12.77 MB
Details
- Supervisors
- Faculty
- Degree label
- Abstract
- Endothelial cells represent the first cellular compartment encountered by fatty acids, whether in lipoprotein form, associated with albumin, or circulating freely following post-prandial absorption or destocking. Underlying tissues depend on the relative permeability of the vascular wall or its ability to transport these fatty acids to meet their metabolic needs. Although endothelial cells are only partially dependent on lipid metabolism, they have developed the ability to store fatty acids in the form of lipid droplets. One hypothesis is that this ability provides endothelial cells with a protective buffering capacity against lipotoxicity for the underlying parenchyma, giving them a major role in the onset of cardiovascular disease. Within the laboratory, Prof. Feron's team has previously determined the effect of extracellular acidity on lipid droplet formation in cancer cells. In this work, we investigated the presence of a similar effect in endothelial cells, first by reproducing the results found in the literature on lipid droplet synthesis in the endothelium, before looking at the impact of the acidity of the extracellular medium. We exposed our cells to different types and concentrations of fatty acids at different pH ranges and exposure times. We then studied the toxicity of these fatty acids on the cells and the impact of this accumulation of lipid droplets on endothelial cell function. Finally, we integrated the information gathered during our research into a pathophysiological context: ischemia-reperfusion injury, where we exposed cardiomyocytes to different types and concentrations of fatty acids in hypoxic and normoxic conditions, to determine the relationship between lipid metabolism and the occurrence of ischemia-reperfusion injury.