Dapagliflozin Does Not Directly Affect Human α or β Cells.

Selective inhibitors of sodium glucose cotransporter-2 (SGLT2) are widely used for the treatment of type 2 diabetes and act primarily to lower blood glucose by preventing glucose reabsorption in the kidney. However, it is controversial whether these agents also act on the pancreatic islet, specifically the α cell, to increase glucagon secretion. To determine the effects of SGLT2 on human islets, we analyzed SGLT2 expression and hormone secretion by human islets treated with the SGLT2 inhibitor dapagliflozin (DAPA) in vitro and in vivo.

Low Coronary Wall Shear Stress Is Associated With Severe Endothelial Dysfunction in Patients With Nonobstructive Coronary Artery Disease.

Objectives: This study investigated the relationship between low wall shear stress (WSS) and severe endothelial dysfunction (EDFx).

Background: Local hemodynamic forces such as WSS play an important role in atherogenesis through their effect on endothelial cells. The study hypothesized that low WSS independently predicts severe EDFx in patients with coronary artery disease (CAD).

Coronary and Peripheral Vasomotor Responses to Mental Stress.

Background: Coronary microvascular dysfunction may contribute to myocardial ischemia during mental stress (MS). However, the role of coronary epicardial and microvascular function in regulating coronary blood flow (CBF) responses during MS remains understudied. We hypothesized that coronary vasomotion during MS is dependent on the coronary microvascular endothelial function and will be reflected in the peripheral microvascular circulation.

Discordance Between Fractional Flow Reserve and Coronary Flow Reserve: Insights From Intracoronary Imaging and Physiological Assessment.

Objectives: The aim of this study was to investigate the epicardial and microvascular substrates associated with discordances between fractional flow reserve (FFR) and coronary flow reserve (CFR) values.

Background: Discordances between FFR and CFR remain poorly characterized.

Methods: FFR, hyperemic stenosis resistance (HSR), and intravascular ultrasound were performed as indexes of epicardial function and CFR and hyperemic microvascular resistance (HMR) as measures of microvascular function in 94 patients with moderate coronary stenosis.

Vasomotor Function Comparative Assessment at 1 and 2 Years Following Implantation of the Absorb Everolimus-Eluting Bioresorbable Vascular Scaffold and the Xience V Everolimus-Eluting Metallic Stent in Porcine Coronary Arteries: Insights From In Vivo Angiography, Ex Vivo Assessment, and Gene Analysis at the Stented/Scaffolded Segments and the Proximal and Distal Edges.

Objectives: The purpose of this study was to assess and compare in vivo the restoration of vasomotor function following Absorb bioresorbable vascular scaffold (BVS) (Abbott Vascular, Santa Clara, California) and metallic Xience V (XV) (Abbott Vascular, Santa Clara, California) stent implantations in porcine coronary arteries at 1 and 2 years.

Background: Drug-eluting metallic coronary stents induce sustained vasomotor dysfunction, and preliminary observations from arteries with bioresorbable scaffolds have indicated partially restored vasoreactivity.

Methods: A total of 15 Absorb BVS (3.

Biocorrodible metals for coronary revascularization: Lessons from PROGRESS-AMS, BIOSOLVE-I, and BIOSOLVE-II.

The impetus for developing drug-eluting bioresorbable scaffolds (BRS) has been driven by the need for elastic and transient platforms instead of stiff and permanent metallic implants in diseased coronary anatomies. This endeavor would prevent acute recoil or occlusion, allow sealing of post-procedural dissections following acute barotrauma, provide inhibition of in-segment restenosis through efficient drug-elution and would further prepare the vessel to enter a reparative phase following scaffold resorption. Biocorrodible metallic platforms have been introduced as alternatives to bioresorbable polymeric scaffolds for the treatment of significant atherosclerosis and in view of the body of evidence derived from recent clinical trials we elaborate on the clinical safety and efficacy of these devices in interventional cardiology.