Abstract: Objective To investigate the expression of insulin-like growth factor 2 receptor (IGF-2R) induced by hypoxia and serum deprivation (H/SD) in cultured neonatal rat cardiomyocytes in vitro. Methods Cultured neonatal rat cardiomyocytes were randomly divided into control group and H/SD group. Expression of IGF-2R mRNA was measured by RT-PCR and real time RT-PCR. Level of IGF-2R protein was measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Results Compared with control group, the expression of IGF-2R mRNA increased significantly (P<0.01) in cardiomyocytes cultured in H/SD condition for 12h and 24h, and IGF-2R protein was upregulated in cardiomyocytes cultured in H/SD condition for 24h(P<0.05). Conclusion H/SD could induce IGF-2R expression, and IGF-2R may involve in the mechanism of cardiomyocyte damage induced by ischemia.

Key words: IGF-2R, Hypoxia and Serum deprivation, cardiomyocytes