Introduction: Retrograde coronary venous infusion is a promising delivery method for cellular cardiomyoplasty. Poor cell retention is the major obstacle to the establishment of this method as the preferred route for cell delivery. Here, we explored whether magnetic targeting could enhance retrograde cell retention in a rat model of myocardial infarction. Methods: Rat mesenchymal stem cells were labeled with superparamagnetic oxide nanoparticles. The magnetic responsiveness of MSCs was observed while cells flowed through a tube that served as a model of blood vessels in a 0.6-Tesla magnetic field. In a Sprague–Dawley rat model of acute myocardial infarction, 1 × 10⁶ magnetic mesenchymal stem cells were transjugularly injected into the left cardiac vein while a 0.6-Tesla magnet was placed above the heart. The cardiac retention of transplanted cells was assessed by using quantitative Y chromosome-specific polymerase chain reaction, cardiac magnetic resonance imaging, and optical imaging. Cardiac function was measured by using echocardiography, and histologic analyses of infarct morphology and angiogenesis were obtained. Results: The flowing iron oxide-labeled mesenchymal stem cells were effectively attracted to the area where the magnet was positioned. Twenty-four hours after cellular retrocoronary delivery, magnetic targeting significantly increased the cardiac retention of transplanted cells by 2.73- to 2.87-fold. Histologic analyses showed that more transplanted cells were distributed in the anterior wall of the left ventricle. The enhanced cell engraftment persisted for at least 3 weeks, at which time, left ventricular remodeling was attenuated, and cardiac function benefit was improved. Conclusions: These results suggest that magnetic targeting offers new perspectives for retrograde coronary venous delivery to enhance cell retention and subsequent functional benefit in heart diseases.

Coronary tortuosity (CT) would alter the local wall shear stress (WSS) and may become a risk factor for atherosclerosis. Here we performed a systematic computational study to relate CT morphological parameters to abnormal WSS, which is a predisposing factor to the formation of atherosclerotic lesions. Several idealized left coronary artery (LCA) models were created to conduct a series of morphological parametric studies, in which we concentrate on three specific morphological parameters, the center line radius (CLR), the bend angle (BA), and the length between two adjust bends (LBB). The time averaged WSS (TAWSS), the oscillatory shear index (OSI), and the time averaged WSS gradient (WSSG_nd) were explored by using the computational fluid dynamics (CFD) method, in order to determine susceptible sites for the onset of early atherosclerosis. In addition, two realistic LCA models were reconstructed to further validate the finding's credibility. The CLR and LBB had great impact on the distributions of WSS-derived parameters, while the BA had minor impact on the hemodynamic of the tortuous arteries. Abnormal regions with low TAWSS (TAWSS < 0.5 Pa), high OSI (OSI > 0.1) and high WSSG_nd (WSSG_nd > 8) were observed at the inner wall of bend sections in the models with small CLR or small LBB. These findings were also confirmed in the realistic models. Severe CT with small CLR or LBB would lead to the formation of abnormal WSS regions at the bend sections and providing these regions with favorable conditions for the onset and/or progression of atherosclerosis.

Adiponectin is reported to relate with cardiovascular diseases, we sought to examine whether adiponectin is associated with disease progression of heart failure from hypertension in rats in comparison with other known biomarkers and echocardiographic parameters. Spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHR, n = 35), aged 1 month, were used and followed up to 18 months. High frequency echocardiography was performed both at baseline and every 3 months thereafter. Moreover, serum levels of N-terminal pro-natriuretic peptide (NT-proBNP) and interleukin-6 (IL-6) as well as serum level and tissue expression of adiponectin were determined at the same time as echocardiography. The results clearly demonstrated time-dependent progression of hypertension and heart dysfunction as evidenced by gradually increased left ventricular mass index, NT-proBNP, IL-6 as well as gradually decreased cardiac function as assessed by echocardiography. Meanwhile, tissue and serum adiponectin decreased from 3 months and reached plateau until 12 months in parallel with decreasing of cardiac diastolic function. Thereafter, adiponectin levels increased prior to occurrence of systolic dysfunction. Adiponectin concentration is inversely related with NT-proBNP, IL-6 and E/E′ (correlation coefficient (r) = −0.756 for NT-proBNP, p < 0.001, -0.635 for IL-6, p = 0.002, and −0.626 for E/E′, p = 0.002, respectively) while positively correlated with E/A and E′/A′ (r = 0.683 for E/A, p = 0.001, 0.671 for E′/A′, p = 0.001, respectively). No difference for adiponectin distribution among visceral adipose tissues was found. Adiponectin through its biphasic serum level is a useful biomarker during transition from diastolic dysfunction to systolic dysfunction.

Objective: Inflammation and malnutrition are critical in heart failure (HF) progression. This study evaluated the prognostic value of inflammation- and nutrition-related indicators for mortality in HF. Methods: Retrospective analysis of 1999–2018 NHANES data (101,316 participants, 1,500 HF patients) assessed indicators including advanced lung cancer inflammation index (ALI), monocyte-to-albumin ratio (MAR), neutrophil-to-albumin ratio (NAR), red cell distribution width-to-albumin ratio (RAR), prognostic nutritional index (PNI), geriatric nutritional risk index (GNRI), hemoglobin-albumin-lymphocyte-platelet (HALP) score and controlling nutritional status (CONUT) score. Associations with all-cause and cardiovascular mortality were analyzed via Kaplan–Meier curves, Cox regression, restricted cubic spline, time-dependent ROC, and random survival forest (RSF). Results: A total of 1,500 HF patients were included in the final analysis. Kaplan–Meier analysis demonstrated that elevated MAR, NAR, RAR, and CONUT scores were linked to higher mortality, whereas elevated ALI, PNI, GNRI, and HALP scores were associated with lower mortality in HF patients. After false discovery rate (FDR) correction, the majority of indicators (including ALI, RAR) remained significantly associated with mortality in multivariable Cox models. Time-dependent ROC analysis demonstrated that RAR exhibited the strongest predictive ability for 1-year all-cause mortality (AUC = 0.768, 95% CI: 0.718–0.819) and cardiovascular mortality (AUC = 0.788, 95% CI: 0.725–0.851). In contrast, ALI showed the best predictive performance for mortality at 3 years (all-cause: AUC = 0.690, 95% CI: 0.654–0.726; cardiovascular: AUC = 0.705, 95% CI: 0.655–0.756), 5 years (all-cause: AUC = 0.679, 95% CI: 0.647–0.711; cardiovascular: AUC = 0.677, 95% CI: 0.633–0.721), and 10 years (all-cause: AUC = 0.691, 95% CI: 0.657–0.725; cardiovascular: AUC = 0.699, 95% CI: 0.656–0.742). These findings were consistent with the C-index results. RSF analysis, validated by an internal hold-out test, consistently identified ALI as a leading predictor of mortality risk. Conclusion: Compared with other inflammation- and nutrition-related indicators, RAR and ALI may provide superior predictive value for short-term and long-term mortality risk, respectively, in HF patients.

The product of red cell distribution width (RDW) and mean corpuscular volume (MCV) has been identified as an indicator of target organ damage in cases of hypertension. However, the role of the RDW–MCV product in assessing carotid alteration, renal damage, and left ventricular hypertrophy in patients with hypertension has not been elucidated. In this cross-sectional study, a total of 1115 participants with hypertension were included. The RDW and MCV at admission were measured using an automated hematology analyzer. Organ damage was determined by the left ventricular mass index (LVMI), carotid intima-media thickness, and estimated glomerular filtration rate. The prevalence rates of carotid alteration and left ventricular hypertrophy were 57.0% and 18.0%, respectively. A higher RDW–MCV product and RDW were observed in hypertensive patients who developed carotid alteration. After adjusting for potential confounding factors, the correlations of the RDW-MCV product (P = .285) and RDW (P = .346) with carotid alteration were not significant. Moreover, the analysis of variance showed no significant correlation between RDW and LVMI (P = .186). However, the RDW–MCV product was higher in individuals with a high LVMI compared to those with a normal LVMI. Multivariable linear regression analysis revealed that the RDW–MCV product was independently associated with the LVMI (β = 2.519, 95% CI: 0.921–4.116; P = .002), but not the estimated glomerular filtration rate (β = −0.260, 95% CI: −2.031–1.511; P = .773). An elevated RDW–MCV product may be a predictor for left ventricular hypertrophy in patients with hypertension.

This study aimed to characterize the temporal prognostic roles of composite inflammation–nutrition indices in mortality risk stratification among adults with diabetes. We conducted a retrospective cohort study in a large population-based sample of adults with diabetes derived from a nationally representative health survey conducted between 1999 and 2018. Seven composite inflammation–nutrition indices were evaluated, including nutritional indices (PNI, GNRI), albumin-based ratios (MAR, NAR, RAR), and integrated scores (ALI and HALP). Associations with all-cause and cardiovascular mortality were assessed using Kaplan–Meier analysis and multivariable Cox regression. Nonlinear relationships were explored using restricted cubic splines, and time-dependent discriminative performance was evaluated across different follow-up periods. Kaplan–Meier analysis showed that higher levels of MAR, NAR, and RAR were significantly associated with increased all-cause mortality, whereas higher ALI, PNI, GNRI, and HALP scores were associated with reduced mortality risk. Multivariable Cox regression analysis indicated that, except for GNRI and HALP, all other indicators were independent predictors of cardiovascular mortality risk; Most evaluated indicators showed significant prognostic value for all-cause mortality, whereas the association for HALP was attenuated and no longer statistically significant after FDR correction. Marked temporal heterogeneity in prognostic performance was observed. RAR demonstrated stronger discrimination for short-term (1-year) mortality, whereas ALI provided more stable prognostic stratification across mid- to long-term follow-up. The overall prognostic importance of ALI was further supported by the Random Survival Forest model, in which ALI consistently ranked among the most influential predictors. This study highlights the complementary, time-dependent prognostic roles of inflammation–nutrition indices in diabetes, underscoring their potential utility for integrated and temporally informed risk assessment.