The Physiological Effects of the Non-Neuronal Cardiac Cholinergic System on the Heart and Extra-Cardiac Organs

Authors

    Yoshihiko Kanikuma Department of Bioregulatory Science, Graduate School of Medicine, Nippon Medical School, Bunkyo, Tokyo 113-0031, Japan

Keywords:

Acetylcholine (ACh), Non-neuronal cardiac cholinergic system (NNCCS), Heart, Oxygen consumption, Energy metabolism, Angiogenesis, Gap junction, Anti-ischemia/hypoxia, Blood brain barrier, Anti-inflammation

Abstract

It has been independently reported that cardiomyocytes possess a system to synthesize acetylcholine (Ach), which is called nonneuronal ACh, and therefore, this system in the heart is named the non-neuronal cardiac cholinergic system (NNCCS). This system is involved in many cardiac physiological aspects including cardiac homeostasis, for example, negative regulation of oxygen consumption, enhancement of glucose preference as a cardiac energy substrate, acceleration of angiogenesis, and upregulation of gap junction function, etc., in other words, enhancement of resilience against damages by ischemia or hypoxia in the heart. The history of the establishment of the NNCCS concept, significant findings of NNCCS functions, the pathogenic roles in the impairment of NNCCS, the link between NNCCS and extra-cardiac organs through the vagal nerve, and its influences on extra-cardiac organ functions are provided in this review.

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Published

2023-12-31