Abstract
BACKGROUND: Formaldehyde (FA) is a common environmental pollutant that has been found to cause negative cardiovascular effects, however, the toxicological mechanism is not well understood. In this study, we investigated the molecular effects of the Nitric Oxide (NO)/cyclic Guanosine Monophosphate (cGMP) signaling pathway and L-type calcium (L-Ca(2+)) channels in rat hearts. METHODS: We designed the short-term FA exposure on the rat heart in different concentrations (0, 0.5, 3, 18 mg/m(3)). After 7 days of exposure, the rats were sacrificed and the rat tissues were removed for various experiments. RESULTS: Our experimental data showed that FA resulted in the upregulation NO and cGMP, especially at 18 mg/m(3). Further, when exposed to high concentrations of FA, Ca(v)1.2 and Ca(v)1.3 expression decreased. We conclude that the NO/cGMP signaling pathway and downstream related channels can be regulated by increasing the production of NO in the low concentration group of FA. High concentration FA directly regulates L-Ca2(2+) channels. CONCLUSION: This study suggests that FA damages the function of the cardiovascular system by regulating the NO/cGMP signaling pathway and L-Ca(2+) channels.