Circulating miRNA-1-3p as Biomarker of Accelerated Sarcopenia in Patients Diagnosed with Chronic Heart Failure.

Background: While sarcopenia is an important clinical finding in individuals diagnosed with chronic heart failure (CHF), efforts to identify a reliable biomarker capable of predicting the overall muscular and functional decline in CHF patients have been unsuccessful to date. Objectives: The objectives of this study were to study the diagnostic utility of MicroRNA (miRNA)-1-3p as a predictor of sarcopenia status in individuals diagnosed with CHF. Methods: In total, 80 individuals with heart failure exhibiting a left ventricular ejection fraction < 50% were enrolled in this study. All patients were analyzed to assess miR-1-3p expression levels, with body composition being evaluated through dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry and sarcopenia being defined based on the sum of appendicular lean muscle mass (ALM) divided by height in meters squared and handgrip strength (HGS). In addition, the activation of the Akt/mTOR signaling pathway was evaluated in these individuals. Results: In total, 40 of the enrolled patients (50%) exhibited sarcopenia. Sarcopenic patients presented with increased miR-1-3p expression levels as compared to non-sarcopenic individuals (1.69 ± 0.132 vs. 1.22 ± 0.106; p < 0.05). With respect to sarcopenic indices, appendicular skeletal mass index was most strongly correlated with miR-1-3p expression, which was also strongly correlated with HGS. High levels of Akt/mTOR signaling pathway components were expressed in sarcopenic individuals, highlighting a significant relationship between miR-1-3p activity and signaling through this pathway. Moreover, miR-1-3p was identified as a specific marker for sarcopenia in individuals with CHF. Conclusions: These results suggest that circulating miR-1-3p levels are related to Akt/mTOR pathway activation and can offer valuable insight into the overall physical capacity and muscular integrity of CHF patients as a predictor of sarcopenia. (Rev Invest Clin. 2022;74(5):276-83).

Circulating miRNA-1-3p as Biomarker of Accelerated Sarcopenia in Patients Diagnosed with Chronic Heart Failure

ABSTRACT Background: While sarcopenia is an important clinical finding in individuals diagnosed with chronic heart failure (CHF), efforts to identify a reliable biomarker capable of predicting the overall muscular and functional decline in CHF patients have been unsuccessful to date. Objectives: The objectives of this study were to study the diagnostic utility of MicroRNA (miRNA)-1-3p as a predictor of sarcopenia status in individuals diagnosed with CHF. Methods: In total, 80 individuals with heart failure exhibiting a left ventricular ejection fraction < 50% were enrolled in this study. All patients were analyzed to assess miR-1-3p expression levels, with body composition being evaluated through dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry and sarcopenia being defined based on the sum of appendicular lean muscle mass (ALM) divided by height in meters squared and handgrip strength (HGS). In addition, the activation of the Akt/mTOR signaling pathway was evaluated in these individuals. Results: In total, 40 of the enrolled patients (50%) exhibited sarcopenia. Sarcopenic patients presented with increased miR-1-3p expression levels as compared to non-sarcopenic individuals (1.69 ± 0.132 vs. 1.22 ± 0.106; p < 0.05). With respect to sarcopenic indices, appendicular skeletal mass index was most strongly correlated with miR-1-3p expression, which was also strongly correlated with HGS. High levels of Akt/mTOR signaling pathway components were expressed in sarcopenic individuals, highlighting a significant relationship between miR-1-3p activity and signaling through this pathway. Moreover, miR-1-3p was identified as a specific marker for sarcopenia in individuals with CHF. Conclusion: These results suggest that circulating miR-1-3p levels are related to Akt/mTOR pathway activation and can offer valuable insight into the overall physical capacity and muscular integrity of CHF patients as a predictor of sarcopenia.

Cross-National Perspectives on Aging and Place: Implications for Age-Friendly Cities and Communities.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: The age-friendly cities and communities (AFCC) agenda has led to a range of policy initiatives aimed at supporting aging in place for older people. While there is case study evidence of how people age across urban contexts, there has been little research exploring cross-national understandings of age-friendly places among older people. The objective of this article is to identify the place experiences of older people living across cities and communities in India, Brazil, and the United Kingdom and to discuss implications for the AFCC agenda. RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS: A total of 300 semistructured interviews were undertaken with older people across 9 cities and 27 communities in India, Brazil, and the United Kingdom. The data were analyzed using thematic analysis undertaken by each national team and then discussed and revised at collaborative workshops with researchers from each of the 3 country teams. RESULTS: The data capture the ways in which place is constructed from the perspective of older people drawing upon social, community, and cultural dimensions of aging across diverse urban environments. We explore how older people negotiate place in the context of their everyday life and identify the relational and interconnected ways in which place attachment, belonging, and identity are constructed. DISCUSSION AND IMPLICATIONS: Age-friendly interventions need to attend to the changing physical, social and cultural dimensions of aging and place. Integrated place-making practices are required to support older people to age in the right place across rapidly transforming urban contexts globally.