Reversing heart disease

Heart failure (HF) is a complex clinical syndrome associated with significant morbidity, mortality, and healthcare costs. It is characterized by various structural and/or functional abnormalities of the heart, resulting in elevated intracardiac pressure and/or inadequate cardiac output at rest and/or during exercise. These dysfunctions can originate from a variety of conditions, including coronary artery disease, hypertension, cardiomyopathies, heart valve disorders, arrhythmias, and other lifestyle or systemic factors...

Long-term spaceflight is known to induce disruptions in circadian rhythms, which are driven by a central pacemaker located in the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN) of the hypothalamus, but the underlying molecular mechanisms remain unclear. Here, we developed a rat model that simulated microgravity and isolation environments through tail suspension and isolation (TSI). We found that the TSI environment imposed circadian disruptions to the core body temperature, heart rate, and locomotor-activity rhythms of rats, especially in the amplitude of these rhythms...

Background : Long-term rhythm monitoring (LTRM) can detect undiagnosed atrial fibrillation (AF) in patients at risk of AF and stroke. Circulating microRNAs (miRNAs), which have been shown to play a role in atrial electrical and structural remodelling, could help to select patients who would benefit most from LTRM. The aim of this study was to investigate whether patients with diabetes mellitus (DM) and hypertension and screen-detected subclinical AF (SCAF) using an insertable cardiac monitor (ICM) have significantly different plasma baseline levels of five selected miRNAs playing a role in the modulation of atrial electrical and structural remodelling (miR-21-5p, miR-29b-3p, miR-150-5p, miR-328-3p, and miR-432-5p) compared to those without SCAF...

BACKGROUND: Bethlem Myopathy is a collagen VI-related myopathy presenting as a rare hereditary muscular disorder with progressive muscular weakness and joint contractures. Despite its milder clinical course relative to other myopathies, anaesthetic management can be challenging. High arched palates and fixed flexion deformities may contribute to a difficult airway. A progressive decline in pulmonary function can present later into adulthood. This respiratory decline can carry secondary cardiovascular consequences due to the progressive nature of restrictive lung disease, including right sided heart disease and pulmonary hypertension...

Assessment of pulmonary regurgitation (PR) guides treatment for patients with congenital heart disease. Quantitative assessment of PR fraction (PRF) by echocardiography is limited. Cardiac MRI (cMRI) is the reference-standard for PRF quantification. We created an algorithm to predict cMRI-quantified PRF from echocardiography using machine learning (ML). We retrospectively performed echocardiographic measurements paired to cMRI within 3 months in patients with ≥ mild PR from 2009 to 2022...

OBJECTIVE: Atherosclerosis is a chronic inflammatory disease of the arteries, and its pathogenesis is related to endothelial dysfunction. It has been found that the protein convertase subtilin/kexin9 type (PCSK9) plays an important role in AS, but its specific mechanism is still unclear. METHODS: In this study, we first cultured human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) with 50 or 100μg/ml oxidized low-density lipoprotein (ox-LDL) for 24 hours to establish a coronary atherosclerosis cell model...

BACKGROUND: Left bundle branch area pacing (LBBAP) is an alternative to biventricular pacing (BVP) for cardiac resynchronization therapy (CRT). However, despite the presence of left bundle branch block, whether cardiac substrate may influence the effect between the 2 strategies is unclear. OBJECTIVES: This study aims to assess the association of septal scar on reverse remodeling and clinical outcomes of LBBAP compared with BVP. METHODS: We analyzed patients with nonischemic cardiomyopathy who had CRT indications undergoing preprocedure cardiac magnetic resonance examination...

BACKGROUND: The triglyceride glucose-body mass index (TyG-BMI) is recognized as a reliable surrogate for evaluating insulin resistance and an effective predictor of cardiovascular disease. However, the link between TyG-BMI index and adverse outcomes in heart failure (HF) patients remains unclear. This study examines the correlation of the TyG-BMI index with long-term adverse outcomes in HF patients with coronary heart disease (CHD). METHODS: This single-center, prospective cohort study included 823 HF patients with CHD...

BACKGROUND: Ubiquitination is an enzymatic modification involving ubiquitin chains, that can be reversed by deubiquitination (DUB) enzymes. Ubiquitin-specific protease 7 (USP7), which is also known as herpes virus-associated ubiquitin-specific protease (HAUSP), has been shown to play a vital role in cardiovascular diseases. However, the underlying molecular mechanism by which USP7 regulates cardiomyocyte function has not been reported. METHODS: To understand the physiological function of USP7 in the heart, we constructed cardiomyocyte-specific USP7 conditional knockout mice...

Newborn mammalian cardiomyocytes quickly transition from a fetal to an adult phenotype that utilizes mitochondrial oxidative phosphorylation but loses mitotic capacity. We tested whether forced reversal of adult cardiomyocytes back to a fetal glycolytic phenotype would restore proliferative capacity. We deleted Uqcrfs1 (mitochondrial Rieske Iron-Sulfur protein, RISP) in hearts of adult mice. As RISP protein decreased, heart mitochondrial function declined, and glucose utilization increased. Simultaneously, they underwent hyperplastic remodeling during which cardiomyocyte number doubled without cellular hypertrophy...

Background : Studies have shown that high-resolution computed tomography (HRCT) of the chest along with clinical parameters is useful in determining the clinical progression, extent of disease and severity of illness in patients with COVID-19. Hence, the present study was done to assess HRCT chest features in patients with COVID-19 infection and to find its association with clinical status in these cases. Materials and methods : This was an observational study over the period of 18 months in patients diagnosed with COVID-19 disease following reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR)...

INTRODUCTION: Evidence indicates that sphingolipid accumulation drives complex molecular alterations promoting cardiometabolic diseases. Clinically, it was shown that sphingolipids predict cardiometabolic risk independently of and beyond traditional biomarkers such as low-density lipoprotein cholesterol. To date, little is known about therapeutic modalities to lower sphingolipid levels. Exercise, a powerful means to prevent and treat cardiometabolic diseases, is a promising modality to mitigate sphingolipid levels in a cost-effective, safe, and patient-empowering manner...

BACKGROUND: Inflamm-aging is associated with the rate of aging and is significantly related to diseases such as Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, atherosclerosis, heart disease, and age-related degenerative diseases such as type II diabetes and osteoporosis. This study aims to evaluate the safety and efficiency of autologous adipose tissue-derived mesenchymal stem cell (AD-MSC) transplantation in aging-related low-grade inflammation patients. METHODS: This study is a single-group, open-label, phase I clinical trial in which patients treated with 2 infusions (100 million cells i...

AIMS: This study aimed to explore the causal relationships between cathepsins and cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) by Mendelian randomization (MR) analysis. METHODS AND RESULTS: Single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) associated with nine cathepsin types (cathepsins B, E, F, G, H, O, S, L2, and Z) were obtained from the INTERVAL study (3301 individuals). CVDs data were acquired from the UK Biobank (coronary atherosclerosis: 14 334 cases, 346 860 controls) and a genome-wide association study (GWAS) (myocardial infarction: 20 917 cases, 440 906 controls; myocarditis: 633 cases, 427 278 controls; chronic heart failure: 14 262 cases, 471 898 controls; angina pectoris: 30 025 cases, 440 906 controls; stable angina pectoris: 17 894 cases, 325 132 controls; unstable angina pectoris: 9481 cases, 446 987 controls; pericarditis: 1795 cases, 453 370 controls)...

Cardiac device therapy provides not only treatment options for bradyarrhythmia but also advanced treatment for heart failure and preventive measures against sudden cardiac death. In heart failure treatment it enables synergistic reverse remodelling and reduces pharmacological side effects. Cardiac resynchronization therapy (CRT) has revolutionized the treatment of reduced left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) and left bundle branch block by decreasing the mortality and morbidity with improvement of the quality of life and resilience...

Trastuzumab is the first-line therapy for human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2)-positive breast cancer. However, trastuzumab is associated with cardiotoxicity. It manifests with an asymptomatic reduction of left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) and is reversible after discontinuation. Trastuzumab-induced new-onset acute decompensated heart failure is rare (0.5%). We report a case of a 54-year-old woman who received anthracycline (idarubicin, accumulated dose 400 mg/m2 doxorubicin equivalent) for her acute promyelocytic leukocyte 10 years ago, had no relevant comorbidities or other pre-existing cardiovascular diseases, had maintained normal cardiac function, presenting with new-onset dyspnea at rest and bilateral lower extremities swelling 12 weeks after receiving trastuzumab induction chemotherapy for her newly diagnosed early stage HER2-positive breast cancer...

OBJECTIVE: Myocardial infarction (MI) is linked to an imbalance in the supply and demand of blood oxygen in the heart muscles. Beta-blockers and calcium antagonists are just two of the common medications used to treat MI. However, these have reportedly been shown to be either ineffective or to have undesirable side effects. Extract of Ginkgo biloba leaves (GBE), a Chinese herbal product offers special compatibility benefits in therapeutic settings relating to inflammatory diseases and oxidative stress...

BACKGROUND: Plant-based diets have gained attention due to their beneficial effects against major chronic diseases, though its association with multimorbidity is mostly unknow. OBJECTIVE: We examined the association between the healthful (hPDI) and unhealthful plant-based diet indices (uPDI) with multimorbidity among middle-aged and older adults from the U.S. METHODS: Data on 4,262 adults over 50 years was drawn from the 2012-2020 Health and Retirement Study (HRS) and 2013 Health Care and Nutrition Study (HCNS)...

Myocarditis is considered a fatal form of foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) in suckling calves. In the present study, a total of 17 calves under 4 months of age and suspected clinically for FMD were examined for clinical lesions, respiratory rate, heart rate, and heart rhythm. Lesion samples, saliva, nasal swabs, and whole blood were collected from suspected calves and subjected to Sandwich ELISA and reverse transcription multiplex polymerase chain reaction (RT-mPCR) for detection and serotyping of FMD virus (FMDV)...

AIMS: Recent reports of myocardial recovery after mechanical unloading with left ventricular assist devices (LVADs) have challenged the prevailing notion that end-stage heart failure (HF) is irreversible. To improve our understanding of this phenomenon, we comprehensively analysed the structural, functional, and energetic changes in failing human cardiomyocytes after LVAD implantation. METHODS: Based on a prospectively registered protocol (PROSPERO-CRD42022380214), 30 eligible studies were identified from 940 records with a pooled population of 648 patients predominantly with non-ischaemic cardiomyopathy...