Serum response factor play a regulative role in the gene ex-pression in heart failure

Objective To investigate the relationship between transcription factor and the change of protein expression levels in heart failure. Methods Bioinformatic method was used to analyze the data of binding-sites on the 5' flaking regions of four genes whose mRNA level changed in failing heart from three databases about nucleic acid-EMBL, transcriptional regulation factor-TRANSFAC and protein-SWISS-PORT. The expression level of selected transcription factor was determined by immunohischemical method. Results Nine transcription factors were inferred to influence the proteins' levels in occurrence and development of heart failure. Serum response factor (SRF) was selected from the nine factors and assayed. The results showed that there was a higher level of SRF in healthy group than in chronic heart failure (CHF). and the level was associated with the degree of CHF. It was also found that there was a relative higher level of SRF in the acute myocardial infarction (AMI) than that in CHF, but which was lower than the healthy. Conclusion It showed that SRF had a quantitative change in the development of heart failure, and suggested SRF might play an important regulative role in heart failure. The expression changes of proteins related to myocardial function might be regulated by the quantitative change of transcription factor(s).