Crosstalk Between Adipose Tissue and the Heart: An Update

Adipokines and their potential impacts on susceptibility to myocardial ischemia/reperfusion injury in diabetes

Coronary artery disease has a high mortality rate and is a striking public health concern, affecting a substantial portion of the global population. On the early onset of myocardial ischemia, thrombolytic therapy and coronary revascularization could promptly restore the bloodstream and nutrient supply to the ischemic tissue, efficiently preserving less severely injured myocardium. However, the abrupt re-establishment of blood flow triggers the significant discharge of previously accumulated oxidative substances and inflammatory cytokines, leading to further harm referred to as ischemia/reperfusion (I/R) injury. Diabetes significantly raises the vulnerability of the heart to I/R injury due to disrupted glucose and lipid processing, impaired insulin sensitivity and metabolic signaling, and increased inflammatory responses. Numerous studies have indicated that adipokines are crucial in the etiology and pathogenesis of obesity, diabetes, hyperlipidemia, hypertension, and coronary artery disease. Adipokines such as adiponectin, adipsin, visfatin, chemerin, omentin, and apelin, which possess protective properties against inflammatory activity and insulin resistance, have been shown to confer myocardial protection in conditions such as atherosclerosis, myocardial hypertrophy, myocardial I/R injury, and diabetic complications. On the other hand, adipokines such as leptin and resistin, known for their pro-inflammatory characteristics, have been linked to elevated cardiac lipid deposition, insulin resistance, and fibrosis. Meteorin-like (metrnl) exhibits opposite effects in various pathological conditions. However, the data on adipokines in myocardial I/R, especially in diabetes, is still incomplete and controversial. This review focuses on recent research regarding the categorization and function of adipokines in the heart muscle, and the identification of different signaling pathways involved in myocardial I/R injury under diabetic conditions, aiming to facilitate the exploration of therapeutic strategies against myocardial I/R injury in diabetes.

High-Throughput Screening of an FDA-Approved Compound Library Reveals a Novel GAS6 Receptor Agonist for Therapeutic Intervention in Septic Myocardial and microvascular Injury via Modulation of Danger-Associated Molecular Patterns

PGAM5 and VDAC1 have both been reported to regulate mitophagy. However, the mechanisms by which they regulate sepsis-induced inflammatory microvascular injury remain unverified. In previous studies, we established the role of this regulatory axis in various phenotypic processes, including mitophagy, mitochondrial biogenesis, the mitochondrial unfolded protein response, and mitochondrial dynamics, while further confirming the interactive regulatory proteins within this axis. However, the validation and elucidation of these regulatory phenotypes have primarily focused on ischemic heart diseases such as ischemic myocardial injury and heart failure. Sepsis-related myocardial injury is currently recognized as a significant cardiac impairment, and although there are cardioprotective and nutritional agents available for supportive therapy, fundamental research validating the upstream targets and mechanisms of microvascular injury is still lacking. Based on our previous research, we further explored the role of mitophagy dysfunction mediated by VDAC1 and its upstream regulatory protein PGAM5 in sepsis-induced coronary microvascular injury. We also confirmed the material basis and metabolic pathway regulation targeting the PGAM5- VDAC1 interactive mechanism with relevant drugs. Our findings suggest that PGAM5-mediated mitophagy dysfunction may be a crucial factor leading to sepsis-induced microvascular injury, primarily interacting with VDAC1-mediated mitochondrial membrane dysfunction. Animal experiments revealed that cardiac-specific knockout of PGAM5 could reverse LPS-induced coronary microvascular injury and inflammatory damage, restoring cardiac ejection function and mitophagy functionality. In vitro studies also confirmed that the PGAM5-VDAC1 interaction can normalize mitophagy, restoring the normal morphology and structure of mitochondria while maintaining normal mitochondrial energy metabolism levels and respiratory chain function. Further pharmacological research indicated that the active ingredients of traditional Chinese medicine-Puerarin (TCM, a GAS6 Receptor Agonist) can target the PGAM5- VDAC1 axis to regulate mitophagy and inhibit LPS-induced necrotic apoptosis in cardiomyocytes, potentially reversing mitochondrial pathway-related cardiac injury. TCM may emerge as a prospective therapeutic agent targeting the PGAM5- VDAC1 axis.

The value of D-dimer in the prognosis of dilated cardiomyopathy: a retrospective cohort study

D-dimer is a biomarker of coagulation and fibrinolytic system activation in response to the hypercoagulable state of the body. The research aimed to analyze the value of D-dimer in the prognosis of patients with dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM). Patients admitted to our center for the first time with DCM were enrolled consecutively. The clinical characteristics variables were obtained from the electronic medical record system, and the prognostic information was obtained using telephone return visits and a review of repeated hospitalization records. Univariate and multivariate Cox regression was used to explore the association of D-dimer with all-cause mortality. Smooth curve fitting, threshold saturation effect analysis, and subgroup analysis were performed. Ultimately, 534 patients were included. After a follow-up of the enrolled patients, 485 patients obtained prognostic information, of which 159 died from all causes, and the main cause of death was heart failure (89/159), the sudden death accounted for about 17%. The independent positive association between D-dimer and all-cause mortality remained unchanged in both unadjusted and adjusted Cox regression models. In the fully adjusted model, each standard deviation increase in D-dimer was associated with a 14% increase in all-cause mortality (HR = 1.14; 95% CI: 1.02 ~ 1.27; P < 0.05). Curve fitting and threshold effect analysis showed an inflection point in the relationship between D-dimer and all-cause mortality (non-linear test: P = 0.03). When D-dimer was equal to 362ng/ml, HR = 1; and as the value increased, the risk of all-cause mortality increased by 34.7% for every 2-fold increase in D-dimer gradually (HR = 1.347; 95% CI: 1.069 ~ 1.697; P = 0.012). In subgroup analysis, D-dimer and BMI had a significant interaction on all-cause mortality, with a significantly increased risk of all-cause mortality in subjects with BMI ≥ 25 kg/m2 (HR = 1.99; 95% CI: 1.34 ~ 2.97; P < 0.01). The ROC curve showed that D-dimer was a good predictor of all-cause mortality, and the areas under the curve at 1-, 3-, and 5-year were 0.71, 0.64, and 0.59, respectively. In addition, D-dimer improved the predictive performance of the MAGGIC heart failure score in patients with DCM. D-dimer is not only independently associated with all-cause mortality in DCM patients, but also has good predictive value, suggesting that D-dimer may be an early and useful marker for improving the management of DCM patients.

Lipid-lowering effects of gefarnate in statin-treated patients with residual hypertriglyceridemia: a randomized controlled study

BACKGROUND

The prevention of coronary artery disease (CAD) faces dual challenges: the aspirin-induced gastrointestinal injury, and the residual cardiovascular risk after statin treatment. Geraniol acetate (Gefarnate) is an anti-ulcer drug. It was reported that geraniol might participate in lipid metabolism through a variety of pathways. The aim of this study was to assess the lipid-lowering effects of gefarnate in statin-treated CAD patients with residual hypertriglyceridemia.

METHODS

In this prospective, open-label, randomized, controlled trial, 69 statin-treated CAD patients with residual hypertriglyceridemia were randomly assigned to gefarnate group and control group, received gefarnate (100 mg/3 times a day) combined with statin and statin alone, respectively. At baseline and after one-month treatment, the levels of plasma triglyceride, high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) and total cholesterol were tested.

RESULTS

After one-month gefarnate treatment, triglyceride level was significantly lowered from 2.64 mmol/L to 2.12 mmol/L (P = 0.0018), LDL-C level lowered from 2.7 mmol/L to 2.37 mmol/L (P = 0.0004), HDL-C level increased from 0.97 mmol/L to 1.17 mmol/L (P = 0.0228). Based on statin therapy, gefarnate could significantly reduce the plasma triglyceride level (P = 0.0148) and increase the plasma HDL-C level (P = 0.0307). Although the LDL-C and total cholesterol levels tended to decrease, there was no statistically significant difference.

CONCLUSIONS

The addition of gefarnate to statin reduced triglyceride level and increased HDL-C level to a significant extent compared to statin alone in CAD patients with residual hypertriglyceridemia. This suggested that gefarnate might provide the dual benefits of preventing gastrointestinal injury and lipid lowering in CAD patients.

Identification of Circulating Plasma Proteins as a Mediator of Hypertension-Driven Cardiac Remodeling: A Mediation Mendelian Randomization Study

BACKGROUND

This study focused on circulating plasma protein profiles to identify mediators of hypertension-driven myocardial remodeling and heart failure.

METHODS

A Mendelian randomization design was used to investigate the causal impact of systolic blood pressure (SBP), diastolic blood pressure (DBP), and pulse pressure on 82 cardiac magnetic resonance traits and heart failure risk. Mediation analyses were also conducted to identify potential plasma proteins mediating these effects.

RESULTS

Genetically proxied higher SBP, DBP, and pulse pressure were causally associated with increased left ventricular myocardial mass and alterations in global myocardial wall thickness at end diastole. Elevated SBP and DBP were linked to increased regional myocardial radial strain of the left ventricle (basal anterior, mid, and apical walls), while higher SBP was associated with reduced circumferential strain in specific left ventricular segments (apical, mid-anteroseptal, mid-inferoseptal, and mid-inferolateral walls). Specific plasma proteins mediated the impact of blood pressure on cardiac remodeling, with FGF5 (fibroblast growth factor 5) contributing 2.96% (P=0.024) and 4.15% (P=0.046) to the total effect of SBP and DBP on myocardial wall thickness at end diastole in the apical anterior segment and leptin explaining 15.21% (P=0.042) and 23.24% (P=0.022) of the total effect of SBP and DBP on radial strain in the mid-anteroseptal segment. Additionally, FGF5 was the only mediator, explaining 4.19% (P=0.013) and 4.54% (P=0.032) of the total effect of SBP and DBP on heart failure susceptibility.

CONCLUSIONS

This mediation Mendelian randomization study provides evidence supporting specific circulating plasma proteins as mediators of hypertension-driven cardiac remodeling and heart failure.

Potential regulatory role of epigenetic modifications in aging-related heart failure

Heart failure (HF) is a serious clinical syndrome and a serious development or advanced stage of various heart diseases. Aging is an independent factor that causes pathological damage in cardiomyopathy and participates in the occurrence of HF at the molecular level by affecting mechanisms such as telomere shortening and mitochondrial dysfunction. Epigenetic changes have a significant impact on the aging process, and there is increasing evidence that genetic and epigenetic changes are key features of aging and aging-related diseases. Epigenetic modifications can affect genetic information by changing the chromatin state without changing the DNA sequence. Most of the genetic loci that are highly associated with cardiovascular diseases (CVD) are located in non-coding regions of the genome; therefore, the epigenetic mechanism of CVD has attracted much attention. In this review, we focus on the molecular mechanisms of HF during aging and epigenetic modifications mediating aging-related HF, emphasizing that epigenetic mechanisms play an important role in the pathogenesis of aging-related CVD and can be used as potential diagnostic and prognostic biomarkers, as well as therapeutic targets.

Differentiation of Pluripotent Stem Cells for Disease Modeling: Learning from Heart Development

Heart disease is a pressing public health problem and the leading cause of death worldwide. The heart is the first organ to gain function during embryogenesis in mammals. Heart development involves cell determination, expansion, migration, and crosstalk, which are orchestrated by numerous signaling pathways, such as the Wnt, TGF-β, IGF, and Retinoic acid signaling pathways. Human-induced pluripotent stem cell-based platforms are emerging as promising approaches for modeling heart disease in vitro. Understanding the signaling pathways that are essential for cardiac development has shed light on the molecular mechanisms of congenital heart defects and postnatal heart diseases, significantly advancing stem cell-based platforms to model heart diseases. This review summarizes signaling pathways that are crucial for heart development and discusses how these findings improve the strategies for modeling human heart disease in vitro.

Brown adipose tissue-derived metabolites and their role in regulating metabolism

The discovery and rejuvenation of metabolically active brown adipose tissue (BAT) in adult humans have offered a new approach to treat obesity and metabolic diseases. Beyond its accomplished role in adaptive thermogenesis, BAT secretes signaling molecules known as "batokines", which are instrumental in regulating whole-body metabolism via autocrine, paracrine, and endocrine action. In addition to the intrinsic BAT metabolite-oxidizing activity, the endocrine functions of these molecules may help to explain the association between BAT activity and a healthy systemic metabolic profile. Herein, we review the evidence that underscores the significance of BAT-derived metabolites, especially highlighting their role in controlling physiological and metabolic processes involving thermogenesis, substrate metabolism, and other essential biological processes. The conversation extends to their capacity to enhance energy expenditure and mitigate features of obesity and its related metabolic complications. Thus, metabolites derived from BAT may provide new avenues for the discovery of metabolic health-promoting drugs with far-reaching impacts. This review aims to dissect the complexities of the secretory role of BAT in modulating local and systemic metabolism in metabolic health and disease.

Long-term outcomes of esophageal and gastric cancer patients with cardiovascular and metabolic diseases: A two-center propensity score-matched cohort study

Background and Objectives

An increased risk of cardiovascular and metabolic diseases (CVMDs) among patients with cancer suggests a potential link between CVMD and cancer. The impact of CVMD on the survival time of patients with esophageal and gastric cancer remains unknown. We aimed to determine the incidence of CVMD and its impact on the longterm outcomes in esophageal and gastric cancer patients.

Methods

A total of 2074 cancer patients were enrolled from January 1, 2007 to December 31, 2017 in two hospitals, including 1205 cases of esophageal cancer and 869 cases of gastric cancer, who were followed up for a median of 79.8 and 79.3 months, respectively. Survival time was analyzed using the Kaplan-Meier method before and after propensity score matching.

Results

The incidence of CVMD in patients with esophageal and gastric cancer was 34.1% (411/1205) and 34.3% (298/869), respectively. The effects of hypertension, diabetes, and stroke on the long-term survival of esophageal and gastric cancer patients were not significant (all P > 0.05). The survival time was significantly longer in esophageal cancer patients without ischemic heart disease than in patients with ischemic heart disease, both before matching (36.5 vs. 29.1 months, P = 0.027) and after matching (37.4 vs. 27.9 months, P = 0.011). The survival time in gastric cancer patients without ischemic heart disease was significantly longer than in patients with ischemic heart disease, both before (28.4 vs.17.5 months, P = 0.032) and after matching (29.5 vs.17.5 months, P = 0.02).

Conclusion

The survival time of esophageal and gastric cancer patients with ischemic heart disease was significantly reduced compared to that of esophageal and gastric cancer patients without ischemic heart disease.