Echocardiographic evaluation of the elasticity of the ascending aorta in patients with essential hypertension.

BACKGROUND: Hypertension is the most common chronic disease and the most important risk factor for cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases. Atheroma and arteriosclerosis plays a key role in the occurrence and development of hypertension. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the elasticity of ascending aorta wall in patients with essential hypertension (EH) using M-mode echocardiography. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We prospectively enrolled 54 EH patients and 51 healthy subjects (HS). They all underwent transthoracic echocardiography to measure ascending aorta inner diameters and brachial blood pressure measurement to calculate aortic elastic variables: compliance, distensibility, strain, stiffness index, and Peterson's elastic modulus. All participants also underwent bilateral carotid ultrasonographic examination. RESULTS: There were no significant differences in age, sex, body mass index, blood lipids, blood glucose, and ascending aorta inner diameters between the two groups. We found neither intimal thickening nor plaque formation in the left or right carotid arteries in both groups. The aortic elastic properties were significantly impaired in EH patients compared with HS. CONCLUSIONS: Echocardiography can be used for the noninvasive evaluation of ascending aorta wall elasticity as an early screening technique. Subclinical arteriosclerosis appeared to occur in the ascending aorta of patients with essential hypertension even though carotid ultrasonography was normal.

Right atrial function assessed by volume-derived values and speckle tracking echocardiography in patients with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy.

BACKGROUND: To detect the right atrial (RA) functions in hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) patients by using volume-derived values and two-dimensional strain. METHODS: Thirty-two HCM patients and 34 age and gender matched normal controls were enrolled for this study. RA volume-derived values were measured by using 2D ultrasonic images. RA strain (S-reservoir, S-conduit, S-booster pump) and strain rate (SR-reservoir, SR-conduit, SR-booster pump), representing the reservoir, conduit and booster pump functions, respectively, were measured by EchoPAC. RESULTS: Total RA emptying fraction (RAEF) and RA expansion index in HCM patients were significantly lower than normal controls (p < 0.05). The values of S-reservoir, S-conduit, Sr-reservoir and Sr-conduit in HCM patients were significantly lower than normal controls (p < 0.001). Although there were no significant differences in S-booster pump and Sr-booster pump between HCM patients and normal controls, the absolute values in HCM patients were lower than normal controls. CONCLUSIONS: In this study, we concluded that RA dysfunctions, including the reservoir and conduit functions were impaired in HCM patients.

Layer-specific speckle tracking analysis of left ventricular systolic function and synchrony in maintenance hemodialysis patients.

BACKGROUND: This study investigated the value of layer-specific strain analysis by two-dimensional speckle tracking echocardiography (2D-STE) for evaluating left ventricular (LV) systolic function and synchrony in maintenance hemodialysis (MHD) patients. METHODS: A total of 34 MHD patients and 35 healthy controls were enrolled in this study. Dynamic images were collected at the LV apical long-axis, the four- and two- chamber, and the LV short-axis views at the basal, middle, and apical segments. The layer-specific speckle tracking (LST) technique was used to analyze the longitudinal strain (LS) and circumferential strain (CS) of LV sub-endocardium, mid-myocardium, sub-epicardium, global longitudinal strain (GLS), global circumferential strain (GCS), the LV 17 segment time to peak LS (TTP), and the peak strain dispersion (PSD). The differences in these parameters were compared between control and MHD groups, and the correlation between PSD and each LS parameter was examined. The receiver operator characteristic (ROC) curve was used to evaluate the efficacy of three myocardial layer LS and CS in the assessment of LV systolic dysfunction in MHD patients. RESULTS: MHD patients had comparable left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF), but significantly smaller LV GLS, GCS, and three-layer LS and CS compared to the control group. The three myocardial layer LS of the basal segment, middle segment, and apex segment was significantly reduced in the MHD patients compared to the normal subjects, while the three myocardial layer CS of the basal segment, middle segment, and apex segment was significantly reduced in the MHD patients compared to the normal subjects, except for the sub-endocardium of the middle and apex segment. MHD patients had significantly higher TTP of LV 17 segments and PSD compared to controls, and had delayed peak time in most segments. In addition, PSD of MHD patients was positively correlated with sub-endocardial and mid-myocardial LS and GLS, but not with sub-epicardial LS. The area under the curves (AUCs) of sub-endocardial, mid-myocardial, and sub-epicardial LS in MHD patients were 0.894, 0.852, and 0.870, respectively; the AUCs of sub-epicardial, mid-myocardial, and sub-endocardial CS were 0.852, 0.837, and 0.669, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: LST may detect early changes of all three-layer LS and CS and PSD in MHD patients, and is therefore a valuable tool to diagnose LV systolic dysfunction in MHD patients.

Left ventricular systolic function changes in hypertrophic cardiomyopathy patients detected by the strain of different myocardium layers and longitudinal rotation.

BACKGROUND: Impairment of left ventricular (LV) longitudinal function has an important role in hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM). This research investigated an association between the longitudinal strain of different myocardial layers, longitudinal rotation and the LV systolic function of HCM patients. METHODS: The research was performed on 36 HCM patients and 36 healthy subjects. The peak systolic longitudinal strain of the subendocardial, midmyocardial, and subepicardial layers was measured using 2-dimensional speckle tracking echocardiography (2D-STE). The apical long-axis and 4- and 2- chamber views were acquired via 2D Doppler echocardiography. The curve of the longitudinal rotation was traced at 17 timepoints in the analysis of 2 cardiac cycles. RESULTS: Compared with healthy subjects, in HCM patients regional LV peak systolic longitudinal strain was less, not only in hypertrophied LV myocardium, but also in non-hypertrophied myocardium. The rotational degrees of the midmyocardial-septal, apex, and lateral wall of HCM patients were significantly different from that of normal subjects, as follows. In HCM patients, clockwise longitudinal rotation was found. The interventricular septum thickness at end-diastole positively correlated with the peak longitudinal systolic strain of the subendocardial, the midmyocardial, and the subepicardial layers. The area under ROC curve values for subendocardial, midmyocardial and subepicardial layers in HCM patients were 0.923, 0.938, 0.948. CONCLUSION: In HCM patients, the longitudinal function was damaged, even with normal LV ejection fraction. The peak longitudinal systolic strain of the subendocardial, midmyocardial, and subepicardial layers, and the longitudinal rotation detected by 2D-STE, are very sensitive predictors of systolic function in patients with HCM.

Left ventricular longitudinal function assessment in rabbits after acute occlusion of left anterior descending coronary artery by two-dimensional speckle tracking imaging.

ABSTACT: BACKGROUND: To evaluate the left ventricular (LV) longitudinal function changes in rabbits after acute occlusion of the left anterior descending artery (LAD) by two-dimensional speckle tracking imaging (2D-STI). METHODS: Forty-eight New Zealand white rabbits underwent echocardiography examination. EchoPAC was used to measure LV peak systolic longitudinal strain (LS) of the endocardium, middle myocardium, and epicardium, peak longitudinal strain rate (LSr), segmental and global longitudinal rotation (LR) degrees. Ligated the LAD and repeated all measurements after 10 min. RESULTS: Peak LS and LSr were significantly different between the preoperative and postoperative rabbits among most LV walls (P < 0.05). In apical four-chamber view, there was significant difference in the degrees of rotation of the LV lateral wall in preoperative and postoperative rabbits (P < 0.05). In apical three-chamber view, the rotation degrees of the posterior wall and the LR were significantly lower in the postoperative than in the preoperative (P < 0.001). In apical two-chamber view, the rotation degrees of the inferior wall and the LR were significantly lower in the postoperative (P < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Left ventricular function was impaired after acute occlusion of LAD. Segmental rotational degrees and changes in LR could be useful indicators of cardiac function during the early phases of acute myocardial ischemia.

Echocardiographic Association of Epicardial Adipose Tissue with Ascending Aorta Elasticity in Patients with Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus.

Epicardial adipose tissue (EAT) is an emerging cardiovascular risk factor located between the myocardium and visceral pericardium. In order to investigate the association between EAT and ascending aorta elasticity in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM), we prospectively enrolled a total of 135 T2DM patients and 63 age- and gender-matched non-T2DM controls in this study. They all underwent transthoracic echocardiography to measure EAT thickness and ascending aorta inner diameters which were used to calculate ascending aorta elastic parameters: compliance (C), distensibility (D), strain (S), stiffness index (SI), and Peterson's elastic modulus (EM). We found that the values of C, D, and S were significantly lower, while SI, EM, and EAT thickness were significantly higher in T2DM patients compared with non-T2DM controls. Compared with T2DM patients with EAT < 5 mm group, C, D, and S were significantly reduced, SI and EM were significantly increased in T2DM patients with EAT ≥ 5 mm group (all P < .05). Bivariate correlation and multivariate linear regression analysis revealed that EAT was independently associated with ascending aorta elasticity. Our findings suggest that thickened EAT in patients with T2DM is associated with ascending aorta elasticity, independent of blood glucose.

Echocardiographic evaluation of the effect of dapagliflozin on epicardial adipose tissue and left ventricular systolic function in type 2 diabetes mellitus.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Epicardial adipose tissue (EAT) is associated with cardiovascular disease, and sodium-glucose cotransporter-2 inhibitors (SGLT-2I) have been reported to reduce the occurrence of cardiovascular events. This study was designed to investigate the effect of an SGLT-2 inhibitor (dapagliflozin) on EAT and left ventricular (LV) systolic function in type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) patients during a 6-month follow-up. METHODS: Twenty-seven T2DM patients who received dapagliflozin for the first time were enrolled in this study to measure EAT thickness and evaluate LV function before and after 6 months of SGLT-2 administration. The thickness of EAT was measured as the echo-free space between the free wall of the right ventricle and the visceral layer of the pericardium at end-systole by echocardiography. LV systolic function was evaluated by LV global longitudinal strain (LV GLS) obtained through two-dimensional speckle tracking echocardiography (2D-STE) technology. RESULTS: After a 6-month follow-up, twenty-five patients completed this study. The values of EAT thickness, HbA1c, body weight, body mass index (BMI), systolic blood pressure (SBP), and diastolic blood pressure (DBP) were significantly reduced, while the LV GLS value was significantly increased. Moreover, the increase in LV GLS was independently associated with the reduction in EAT thickness, HbA1c, weight, and SBP (all p < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Dapagliflozin can reduce EAT thickness and improve LV systolic function in T2DM patients. 2D-STE can be used for the early evaluation of the beneficial effect of dapagliflozin on LV systolic function. The improvement in LV systolic function is independently associated with a reduction in EAT thickness.

Epicardial adipose tissue and right ventricular function in type 2 diabetes mellitus using two-dimensional speckle tracking echocardiography.

BACKGROUND: Epicardial adipose tissue is an emerging cardiovascular risk factor. The aim of this study was to evaluate right ventricular function and investigate its association with EAT in T2DM patients. METHODS: 154 T2DM patients were divided into two groups according to EAT thickness: T2DM with EAT <5 mm and T2DM with EAT ≥5 mm. Seventy non-T2DM patients were enrolled as control group. RV function was evaluated using both conventional echocardiography as well as two-dimensional speckle tracking echocardiography. EAT thickness was measured as the echo-free space between the free wall of the right ventricle and the visceral layer of pericardium at end-systole. RESULTS: Compared to control group, EAT thickness was significantly higher and RV systolic function and early diastolic function are all impaired in all T2DM patients. In T2DM with EAT ≥5 mm group, RV systolic function and early diastolic function suffered more severe impairment when compared with T2DM with EAT <5 mm group. Multivariate linear regression analysis revealed that EAT was associated with RV systolic and early diastolic dysfunction independent of traditional cardiovascular risk factors. CONCLUSIONS: Our research suggest that in T2DM patients RV systolic function and early diastolic function are all impaired which are associated with the thickened EAT.

Association between epicardial adipose tissue and left ventricular function in type 2 diabetes mellitus: Assessment using two-dimensional speckle tracking echocardiography.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Epicardial adipose tissue (EAT) is the visceral fat between the myocardium and the visceral pericardium. Dysfunctional EAT can cause cardiovascular diseases. The aim of this study was to investigate the association between EAT and left ventricular function in type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) patients by two-dimensional speckle tracking echocardiography (2D-STE). METHODS: We prospectively enrolled 116 T2DM patients who were divided into two groups according to their left ventricular global longitudinal strain (GLS): 53 with GLS <18% and 63 with GLS ≥18%. The thickness of EAT was measured as the echo-free space between the free wall of the right ventricle and the visceral layer of pericardium at end-systole. LV systolic function was evaluated by GLS measured by 2D-STE. LV diastolic function was defined as the ratio of the early diastolic transmitral flow velocity (E) to average mitral annular velocity (e¯). RESULTS: Compared with patients with GLS ≥18% group, the age, body mass index (BMI), waist circumference (WC), systolic blood pressure (SBP), diastolic blood pressure (DBP), low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), glycosylated hemoglobinA1c (HbA1c), E/e¯, and thickness of EAT were higher in patients with GLS <18% group (all P < 0.05). Multivariate linear regression analysis revealed that the thickness of EAT was independently associated with left ventricular GLS and E/e¯. CONCLUSIONS: Thickened EAT is associated with impaired left ventricular function in T2DM patients. To investigate the association between EAT and left ventricular function can help us gain a deeper understanding of the pathogenesis of impaired cardiac function in T2DM patients.

Determination of three sites involved in the divergence of L-aspartate-α-decarboxylase self-cleavage in bacteria.

L-aspartate-α-decarboxylase (PanD) is an essential enzyme catalysing the decarboxylation of L-aspartate to ß-alanine in organisms. To perform the catalytic functions, PanD pro-proteins need to be self-cleaved to form two subunits: active α-subunit and ß-subunit. However, the processes of self-cleavage have diverged in different organisms for unknown reasons. To reveal the possible divergence mechanisms, the molecular evolution, selection pressures and site-directed mutagenesis of the panD gene family were explored in this study. The evolution analysis revealed that the panD genes in bacteria have diverged into three clades: Class I, Class II and Class III. Furthermore, 9 positive selection sites (A13, T14, V23, L32, V44, N49, L55, L78, and V85 in BsupanD) were detected. As shown by SDS-PAGE assay and catalytic activity determination in the mutants of BsupanD and EcoPanD, three of those sites (T14, V44 and V85) affect the PanD activities and are involved in the divergence of panD self-cleavage, while the other 6 sites only influenced the enzymatic activities of PanD. Furthermore, the structure analysis indicated that the structural mechanisms of the 9 sites affecting the catalysis were various. In all, three sites contributing to the divergence of PanD self-cleavage were revealed, and the results also provide foundation for the industrial application of PanD in ß-alanine synthesis.

Whole-cell biotransformation for large scale production of carcinine in Escherichia coli.

Carcinine is a natural imidazole-containing peptide derivative. It is widely used in the cosmetics industry as anti-aging supplement with antioxidant, anti-glycation and glycation reversal functions, and it also has a notable pharmacological effect as anti-tumor drug and in protection against retinopathy. However, a technological method for synthesis and production of carcinine has not been established. In this study, a whole-cell transformation system converting ß-alanine and histamine to carcinine by the enzymes Ebony and phosphopantetheine transferase (Sfp) has been developed. The results revealed that the catalytic efficiency of the strain containing the fusion protein of Ebony and Sfp (Sfp-glycine-serine-glycine-Ebony, SGE) in Escherichia coli W3110 (WSGE strain) is significantly higher (7.45 mM) than the combinatorial strain of pET28a-ebony and pACYCDuet-sfp in E. coli BL21(DE3) (BSE strain) (2.17 mM). Under the optimal reaction conditions (25 â„ƒ, pH 7.0, 12.5 g/L wet cells, 20 mM ß-alanine and 40 mM histamine), the carcinine can be quickly synthesized within 24 h up to a concentration of 22.63 mM. To achieve a continuous and efficient conversion of the precursors, a batch-feeding catalysis was designed. With this system, ß-alanine (40 mM) and histamine (40 mM) could be completely transformed to carcinine (40.34 mM) in 36 h with a productivity of 0.204 g/L h reaching a titer of 7.34 g/L. Hence, the batch-feeding whole-cell biocatalysis is a promising technology for the high yield production of carcinine which can promote the industrial production of carcinine.

Echocardiographic evaluation of the effect of poor blood glucose control on left ventricular function and ascending aorta elasticity.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) is associated with high cardiovascular risk. Preclinical left ventricular (LV) dysfunction and subclinical arterial stiffness have been documented in patients with T2DM. The aims of this study were to investigate whether there were any differences in LV function and ascending aorta elasticity between T2DM patients with controlled [defined as glycosylated hemoglobin (HbA1c) <6.5%] and uncontrolled (HbA1c ≥6.5%) blood glucose. METHODS: We studied 86 T2DM patients: 42 T2DM patients with controlled blood glucose (controlled T2DM group) and 44 T2DM patients with uncontrolled blood glucose (uncontrolled T2DM group), and 40 healthy subjects as control. They all underwent transthoracic echocardiography examination, LV systolic function was evaluated by global longitudinal strain (GLS) and LV diastolic function was defined as the ratio of the early diastolic transmitral flow velocity (E) to average mitral annular velocity (e¯). Ascending aorta inner diameters and brachial blood pressure were measured to calculate ascending aorta elastic parameters: compliance (C), distensibility (D), strain (S), stiffness index (SI), Peterson's elastic modulus (EM). RESULTS: Compared to control, T2DM patients had reduced GLS, increased E/e ̅ and impaired ascending aorta elasticity. Furthermore, LV function and ascending aorta elasticity were more severely damaged in uncontrolled T2DM group compared with controlled T2DM group. By Pearson correlation analysis, the level of HbA1c was independently associated with the parameters of the LV function and ascending aorta elasticity. CONCLUSIONS: T2DM can impair the LV myocardial function and ascending aorta elastic properties, which may be further impaired by poor blood glucose control.

Comparative transcriptome analysis during seeds development between two soybean cultivars.

Soybean is one of the important economic crops, which supplies a great deal of vegetable oil and proteins for human. The content of nutrients in different soybean seeds is different, which is related to the expression of multiple genes, but the mechanisms are complicated and still largely uncertain. In this study, to reveal the possible causes of the nutrients difference in soybeans A7 (containing low oil and high protein) and A35 (containing high oil and low protein), RNA-seq technology was performed to compare and identify the potential differential expressed genes (DEGs) at different seed developmental stages. The results showed that DEGs mainly presented at the early stages of seeds development and more DEGs were up-regulated at the early stage than the late stages. Gene Ontology and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes analysis showed that the DEGs have diverged in A7 and A35. In A7, the DEGs were mainly involved in cell cycle and stresses, while in A35 were the fatty acids and sugar metabolism. Specifically, when the DEGs contributing to oil and protein metabolic pathways were analyzed, the differences between A7 and A35 mainly presented in fatty acids metabolism and seeds storage proteins (SSPs) synthesis. Furthermore, the enzymes, fatty acid dehydrogenase 2, 3-ketoacyl-CoA synthase and 9S-lipoxygenase, in the synthesis and elongation pathways of fatty acids, were revealed probably to be involved in the oil content difference between A7 and A35, the SSPs content might be due to the transcription factors: Leafy Cotyledon 2 and Abscisic acid-intensitive 3, while the sugar transporter, SWEET10a, might contribute to both oil and protein content differences. Finally, six DEGs were selected to analyze their expression using qRT-PCR, and the results were consistent with the RNA-seq results. Generally, the study provided a comprehensive and dynamic expression trends for the seed development processes, and uncovered the potential DEGs for the differences of oil in A7 and A35.

Evaluation of the Effect of Essential Hypertension on Elasticity of Ascending Aorta in Type 2 Diabetic Mellitus Patients by Echocardiography.

Both essential hypertension (EH) and type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) can impair the elasticity of the ascending aorta. We prospectively enrolled 42 patients with T2DM, 44 patients with EH, 45 patients with T2DM and EH (T2DM + EH), and 41 healthy subjects (HS). They all underwent transthoracic echocardiography to measure ascending aorta inner diameters and a brachial blood pressure measurement to calculate aortic elastic parameters (ie, compliance, distensibility, strain, stiffness index, and Peterson elastic modulus). We found that there were no significant differences as regard with age, sex, body mass index, blood lipids and glucose, carotid atherosclerosis, and ascending aorta inner diameters among the 4 groups. The aortic elastic properties were significantly impaired in T2DM, EH, and T2DM + EH patients compared with the HS, and more impaired in EH and T2DM + EH patients than T2DM patients; there were no significant differences between EH and T2DM + EH patients. Our findings suggest that both T2DM and EH can impair aortic elastic properties. Essential hypertension may play a more important role in the process of ascending aorta sclerosis in patients with T2DM + EH.