The Prognostic Value of Serum Calcium Levels in Elderly Dilated Cardiomyopathy Patients.

Background: It is unclear whether serum calcium on admission is associated with clinical outcomes in dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM). In this study, we conducted a retrospective study spanning a decade to investigate the prognostic value of baseline calcium in elderly patients with DCM.

Methods: A total of 1,089 consecutive elderly patients (age ≥60 years) diagnosed with DCM were retrospectively enrolled from January 2010 to December 2019.

Serum albumin and prognosis in elderly patients with nonischemic dilated cardiomyopathy.

Aims: Hypoalbuminemia was extensively used to diagnose malnutrition in older adults. Malnutrition was associated with mortality in elderly patients with cardiovascular diseases. The relationship between hypoalbuminemia and clinical outcomes in elderly patients with nonischemic dilated cardiomyopathy (NIDCM) remains unknown.

Leukocyte-Specific Morrbid Promotes Leukocyte Differentiation and Atherogenesis.

Monocyte-to-M0/M1 macrophage differentiation with unclear molecular mechanisms is a pivotal cellular event in many cardiovascular diseases including atherosclerosis. Long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) are a group of protein expression regulators; however, the roles of monocyte-lncRNAs in macrophage differentiation and its related vascular diseases are still unclear. The study aims to investigate whether the novel leukocyte-specific lncRNA Morrbid could regulate macrophage differentiation and atherogenesis.

Influence of FOSL1 Inhibition on Vascular Calcification and ROS Generation through Ferroptosis via P53-SLC7A11 Axis.

Background: Vascular calcification during aging is highly prevalent in patients with cardiovascular disease; however, there is still no improvement in clarifying the development of vascular calcification. FOSL1 is a transcription regulator belonging to the AP-1 family, which has a unique function in vascular senescence, but its role in vascular calcification needs to be further explored.

Methods: Primary mouse vascular smooth muscle cells were isolated and used to construct a calcification model in vitro.

Rewiring of 3D Chromatin Topology Orchestrates Transcriptional Reprogramming and the Development of Human Dilated Cardiomyopathy.

Background: Transcriptional reconfiguration is central to heart failure, the most common cause of which is dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM). The effect of 3-dimensional chromatin topology on transcriptional dysregulation and pathogenesis in human DCM remains elusive.

Methods: We generated a compendium of 3-dimensional epigenome and transcriptome maps from 101 biobanked human DCM and nonfailing heart tissues through highly integrative chromatin immunoprecipitation (H3K27ac [acetylation of lysine 27 on histone H3]), in situ high-throughput chromosome conformation capture, chromatin immunoprecipitation sequencing, assay for transposase-accessible chromatin using sequencing, and RNA sequencing.

CCAAT/Enhancer-Binding Protein Alpha Is a Novel Regulator of Vascular Smooth Muscle Cell Osteochondrogenic Transition and Vascular Calcification.

Aims: Vascular calcification is a common clinical complication of chronic kidney disease (CKD), atherosclerosis (AS), and diabetes, which is associated with increased cardiovascular morbidity and mortality in patients. The transdifferentiation of vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs) to an osteochondrogenic phenotype is a crucial step during vascular calcification. The transcription factor CCAAT/enhancer-binding protein alpha (C/EBPα) plays an important role in regulating cell proliferation and differentiation, but whether it regulates the calcification of arteries and VSMCs remains unclear.

The Novel LncRNA AK035396 Drives Cardiomyocyte Apoptosis Through Mterf1 in Myocardial Ischemia/Reperfusion Injury.

Myocardial ischaemia/reperfusion (I/R) injury is still a major challenge in clinical treatment. The role of long non-coding RNA (lncRNA) in the regulation of myocardial I/R injury still needs to be elucidated. The primary isolated neonatal mousse cardiomyocytes and adult mice were used to construct a myocardial ischemia-reperfusion model.

Zinc ameliorates human aortic valve calcification through GPR39 mediated ERK1/2 signalling pathway.

Aims: Calcific aortic valve disease (CAVD) is the most common heart valve disease in the Western world. It has been reported that zinc is accumulated in calcified human aortic valves. However, whether zinc directly regulates CAVD is yet to be elucidated.

The prognostic value of postoperative blood glucose in non-diabetic patients with rheumatic heart disease.

Background: Blood glucose (BG) is a risk factor of adverse prognosis in non-diabetic patients in several conditions. However, a limited number of studies were performed to explore the relationship between postoperative BG and adverse outcomes in non-diabetic patients with rheumatic heart disease (RHD).

Methods: We identified 1395 non-diabetic patients who diagnosed with having RHD, and underwent at least one valve replacement and preoperative coronary angiography.

Utility of age, creatinine, and ejection fraction score in patients with type B aortic dissection undergoing thoracic endovascular aortic repair.

Background: Older age, renal and cardiac dysfunction are predictors of poor outcome in aortic dissection. The aim of this study was to evaluate the association of the age, creatinine and ejection fraction (ACEF) score with adverse events in patients with type B aortic dissection (TBAD) undergoing thoracic endovascular aortic repair (TEVAR).

Methods: The study enrolled 605 patients from January 2010 to July 2015, who were classified into three groups according to the tertiles of ACEF score: Tertile 1 (≤0.