Research Highlights in 2023

Findings from the STELLAR trial show that the addition of sotatercept to background therapy in patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension significantly improved exercise capacity compared with placebo.

Deisseroth and colleagues used a novel optogenetic system to pace the heart and determine whether an increase in heart rate can evoke anxiety-like behaviours.

Findings from the DREAM-HF trial, the largest clinical trial of cell therapy in heart failure with reduced ejection fraction (HFrEF) to date, suggest that cardiac therapy with mesenchymal precursor cells might benefit patients with HFrEF, particularly those with inflammation.

The non-nutritive sweetener erythritol, a widely used sugar substitute, is associated with an increased risk of cardiovascular disease, including myocardial infarction and stroke, according to a new study.

Adenine base editing can be used to correct a genetic variant in preclinical models of hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, and this approach could be applied to other monogenic cardiac diseases.

A legally mandated preparticipation screening programme for all young people in Italy engaging in competitive sports has resulted in a very low rate of sports-related cardiac arrest and sudden cardiac death.

Researchers have engineered a wearable device that adheres to the skin and uses ultrasound imaging and a deep learning model to produce a dynamic, real-time assessment of cardiac function.

CRISPR–Cas9 base editing of the oxidative activation sites of CaMKIIδ protects the heart from ischaemia–reperfusion damage in mice.

A subpopulation of cardiac-resident macrophages protect the heart against sepsis-induced cardiomyopathy by scavenging dysfunctional mitochondria ejected from cardiomyocytes; modulation or administration of these macrophages might be a potential therapeutic strategy.

In treatment-naive patients with essential hypertension, supplementation with prebiotic acetylated and butyrylated high amylose maize starch significantly reduces systolic blood pressure levels compared with placebo.

A new study shows that age-dependent nuclear remodelling in cardiomyocytes (via age-related loss of nuclear lamins) contributes to cardiac dysfunction through a process that is conserved in flies, mice and nonhuman primates.

A machine learning model trained using clinical data from electronic health records generated a novel in silico quantitative score for coronary artery disease

An intravascularly infused extracellular matrix preparation binds to leaky microvasculature, thereby localizing to inflamed tissues and promoting repair and regeneration, and potentially healing damaged tissues ‘from the inside out’.