The effects of dipeptidyl peptidase-4 on cardiac fibrosis in pressure overload-induced heart failure

Dipeptidyl peptidase-4 (dpp-4) inhibitors are hypoglycemic agents. dpp-4 inhibitor has cardioprotective effects after transverse aortic constriction (tac),but role of dpp-4 on cardiac fibrosis after tac is not well known. our aim was to determine the effects of dpp-4 on cardiac fibrosis in murine tac model. wild-type mice and dpp-4 knockout mice were subjected to tac. wild-type mice were then treated with vehicle or dpp-4 inhibitor. dpp-4 activities in serum and heart tissue were significantly increased at 2 weeks after tac,but they were significantly decreased by dpp-4 inhibitor treatment. the inhibition of dpp-4 did not affect left ventricular hypertrophy,but improved cardiac function and decreased myocardial and perivascular fibrosis after tac. the inhibition of dpp-4 decreased the collagen type iii/i ratio in myocardium. these results suggest that dpp-4 inhibition ameliorates the progression of heart failure after tac by changing the quality and quantity of cardiac fibrosis. © 2017 the authors