Trimethylamine N-Oxide (TMAO) Inducing Endothelial Injury: UPLC-MS/MS-Based Quantification and the Activation of Cathepsin B-Mediated NLRP3 Inflammasome

TMAO is a new risk biomarker for cardiovascular disease. With trimethylammonium as its main chemical skeleton, TMAO is structurally similar to many endogenous metabolites, such as acetylcholine, carnitine, phosphorylcholine, etc. The mechanism of TMAO on the pathological process of CVD is still unclear. In this study, the quantitative analysis of plasma TMAO is conducted, and the contribution of Cathepsin B and NLRP3 inflammasome during the process of TMAO-induced endothelial injury was proposed and investigated at animal and cellular levels. Immunofluorescence assay was applied to represent the protein expression of Cathepsin B and NLRP3 inflammasome located at endothelial cells. The results showed that TMAO could disrupt endothelial cells permeability to induce endothelial injury, meanwhile, TMAO could increase NLRP3 inflammasome activation and promote the activity and expression of Cathepsin B in vitro and in vivo, whereas inhibition of NLRP3 inflammasome activation by MCC950 could protect the endothelial cells from TMAO associated endothelial injury via Cathepsin B. The study reveals that TMAO can cause endothelial injury via Cathepsin B-dependent NLRP3 inflammasome, and inhibition of Cathepsin B and NLRP3 inflammasome can reduce the TMAO-induced damage. The results provide new insight into the role of TMAO in CVD, which can be a potential therapeutic target for disease treatment and drug design.