bims-hafaim Biomed News
on Heart failure metabolism
Issue of 2024–04–21
five papers selected by
Kyle McCommis, Saint Louis University



  1. JACC Heart Fail. 2024 Apr 03. pii: S2213-1779(24)00182-3. [Epub ahead of print]
    PRESERVED-HF Investigators
       BACKGROUND: Although sodium glucose co-transporter 2 inhibitors (SGLT2is) improve heart failure (HF)-related symptoms and outcomes in HF with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF), underlying mechanisms remain unclear. In HF with reduced EF, dapagliflozin altered ketone and fatty acid metabolites vs placebo; however, metabolite signatures of SGLT2is have not been well elucidated in HFpEF.
    OBJECTIVES: The goal of this study was to assess whether SGLT2i treatment altered systemic metabolic pathways and their relationship to outcomes in HFpEF.
    METHODS: Targeted profiling of 64 metabolites was performed from 293 participants in PRESERVED-HF (Dapagliflozin in PRESERVED Ejection Fraction Heart Failure), a 12-week, placebo-controlled trial of dapagliflozin. Linear regression assessed changes in metabolite factors defined by principal components analysis (PCA) with dapagliflozin vs placebo. The relationship between changes in metabolite factors with changes in study endpoints was also assessed.
    RESULTS: The mean age was 70 ± 11 years, 58% were female, and 29% were Black. There were no significant differences in 12 PCA-derived metabolite factors between treatment arms, including metabolites reflecting ketone, fatty acid, or branched-chain amino acid (BCAA) pathways. Combining treatment arms, changes in BCAAs and branched-chain ketoacids were negatively associated with changes in N-terminal pro-B-type natriuretic peptide; changes in medium-/long-chain acylcarnitines were positively associated with changes in N-terminal pro-B-type natriuretic peptide and negatively associated with changes in 6-minute walk test distance; and changes in ketones were negatively associated with changes in weight, without treatment interaction.
    CONCLUSIONS: Leveraging targeted metabolomics in a placebo-controlled SGLT2i trial of HFpEF, dapagliflozin did not alter systemic metabolic as reflected by circulating metabolites, in contrast with reported effects in HF with reduced ejection fraction. Metabolite biomarkers reflecting BCAA, ketone, and fatty acid metabolism were associated with markers of disease severity, suggesting a role for potential novel treatment targets. (Dapagliflozin in PRESERVED Ejection Fraction Heart Failure [PRESERVED-HF]; NCT03030235).
    Keywords:  SGLT2i; acylcarnitine; branched-chain amino acids; heart failure with preserved ejection fraction; ketone bodies; metabolomics
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jchf.2024.02.018
  2. Clin Sci (Lond). 2024 Apr 24. 138(8): 491-514
      The non-stop provision of chemical energy is of critical importance to normal cardiac function, requiring the rapid turnover of ATP to power both relaxation and contraction. Central to this is the creatine kinase (CK) phosphagen system, which buffers local ATP levels to optimise the energy available from ATP hydrolysis, to stimulate energy production via the mitochondria and to smooth out mismatches between energy supply and demand. In this review, we discuss the changes that occur in high-energy phosphate metabolism (i.e., in ATP and phosphocreatine) during ischaemia and reperfusion, which represents an acute crisis of energy provision. Evidence is presented from preclinical models that augmentation of the CK system can reduce ischaemia-reperfusion injury and improve functional recovery. Energetic impairment is also a hallmark of chronic heart failure, in particular, down-regulation of the CK system and loss of adenine nucleotides, which may contribute to pathophysiology by limiting ATP supply. Herein, we discuss the evidence for this hypothesis based on preclinical studies and in patients using magnetic resonance spectroscopy. We conclude that the correlative evidence linking impaired energetics to cardiac dysfunction is compelling; however, causal evidence from loss-of-function models remains equivocal. Nevertheless, proof-of-principle studies suggest that augmentation of CK activity is a therapeutic target to improve cardiac function and remodelling in the failing heart. Further work is necessary to translate these findings to the clinic, in particular, a better understanding of the mechanisms by which the CK system is regulated in disease.
    Keywords:  adenosine triphosphate; cardiac energetics; creatine kinase; heart failure; ischaemia-reperfusion injury
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1042/CS20230616
  3. J Vis Exp. 2024 Mar 29.
      The pathophysiology of heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF) driven by lipotoxicity is incompletely understood. Given the urgent need for animal models that accurately mimic cardio-metabolic HFpEF, a hyperlipidemia-induced murine model was developed by reverse engineering phenotypes seen in HFpEF patients. This model aimed to investigate HFpEF, focusing on the interplay between lipotoxicity and metabolic syndrome. Hyperlipidemia was induced in wild-type (WT) mice on a 129J strain background through bi-weekly intraperitoneal injections of poloxamer-407 (P-407), a block co-polymer that blocks lipoprotein lipase, combined with a single intravenous injection of adeno-associated virus 9-cardiac troponin T-low-density lipoprotein receptor (AAV9-cTnT-LDLR). Extensive assessments were conducted between 4 and 8 weeks post-treatment, including echocardiography, blood pressure recording, whole-body plethysmography, echocardiography (ECG) telemetry, activity wheel monitoring (AWM), and biochemical and histological analyses. The LDLR/P-407 mice exhibited distinctive features at four weeks, including diastolic dysfunction, preserved ejection fraction, and increased left ventricular wall thickness. Notably, blood pressure and renal function remained within normal ranges. Additionally, ECG and AWM revealed heart blocks and reduced activity, respectively. Diastolic function deteriorated at eight weeks, accompanied by a significant decline in respiratory rates. Further investigation into the double treatment model revealed elevated fibrosis, wet/dry lung ratios, and heart weight/body weight ratios. The LDLR/P-407 mice exhibited xanthelasmas, ascites, and cardiac ischemia. Interestingly, sudden deaths occurred between 6 and 12 weeks post-treatment. The murine HFpEF model offers a valuable and promising experimental resource for elucidating the intricacies of metabolic syndrome contributing to diastolic dysfunction within the context of lipotoxicity-mediated HFpEF.
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.3791/66442
  4. Cell Biochem Biophys. 2024 Apr 15.
      Multiple RNAs have been involved in the progress of heart failure. However, the role of miR-1268a in heart failure is still unclear. The differentially expressed miRNAs in heart failure was analyzed based on GEO dataset GSE104150. AC16 cells were treated with Angiotensin II (Ang II) to explore the role of miR-1268a in heart failure. The web tool miRWalk was used to analyze the targets of miR-1268a. miR-1268a was up-regulated in Ang II-treated AC16 cells. Ang II treatment markedly inhibited cell proliferation, ATP production, fatty acid (FA) uptake and enhanced levels of HF markers BNP and ST2, and oxidative stress of AC16 cells. Notably, inhibition of miR-1268a eliminated the inhibiting effect of Ang II on cell proliferation, ATP production, FA uptake and decreased levels of BNP an ST2, and oxidative stress on AC16 cells. Furthermore, CD36 was a target of miR-1268a and the CD36 level was decreased by miR-1268a mimics but increased by miR-1268a inhibitor in AC16 cells. miR-1268a regulates FA metabolism and oxidative stress in myocardial cells by targeting CD36 in heart failure.
    Keywords:  CD36; Cardiomyocyte; Fatty acid metabolism; Heart failure; miR-1268a
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1007/s12013-024-01268-y
  5. Geroscience. 2024 Apr 17.
      Both heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF) and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) develop due to metabolic dysregulation, has similar risk factors (e.g., insulin resistance, systemic inflammation) and are unresolved clinical challenges. Therefore, the potential link between the two disease is important to study. We aimed to evaluate whether NASH is an independent factor of cardiac dysfunction and to investigate the age dependent effects of NASH on cardiac function. C57Bl/6 J middle aged (10 months old) and aged mice (24 months old) were fed either control or choline deficient (CDAA) diet for 8 weeks. Before termination, echocardiography was performed. Upon termination, organ samples were isolated for histological and molecular analysis. CDAA diet led to the development of NASH in both age groups, without inducing weight gain, allowing to study the direct effect of NASH on cardiac function. Mice with NASH developed hepatomegaly, fibrosis, and inflammation. Aged animals had increased heart weight. Conventional echocardiography revealed normal systolic function in all cohorts, while increased left ventricular volumes in aged mice. Two-dimensional speckle tracking echocardiography showed subtle systolic and diastolic deterioration in aged mice with NASH. Histologic analyses of cardiac samples showed increased cross-sectional area, pronounced fibrosis and Col1a1 gene expression, and elevated intracardiac CD68+ macrophage count with increased Il1b expression. Conventional echocardiography failed to reveal subtle change in myocardial function; however, 2D speckle tracking echocardiography was able to identify diastolic deterioration. NASH had greater impact on aged animals resulting in cardiac hypertrophy, fibrosis, and inflammation.
    Keywords:  Fatty liver; Inflammation; Liver fibrosis; Metabolic dysfunction; Strain rate analysis
    DOI:  https://doi.org/10.1007/s11357-024-01153-9