Chronic Colitis Impairs Cardiac Function by Suppressing Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor in the Adult Heart. Chronic Colitis Impairs Cardiac Function by Suppressing Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor in the Adult Heart

Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) represents a spectrum of chronic inflammatory mediated conditions with known extraintestinal complications. The interplay between patients with heart failure (HF) and IBD has previously been noted, but the mechanisms driving these changes have not been well elucidated. We elucidated mechanisms in which chronic colitis can impair cardiac function via alteration of miRNA expression. Overall design: To induce chronic colitis, dextran sodium sulfate (DSS, 3% in drinking water) was given to adult rats for 5 days followed by 9 days with normal drinking water for a total of 4 cycles over 8 weeks. Then transthoracic echocardiography (TTE) was performed and rats were euthanized for tissue collection. MiRNA profiling performed by LC sciences showed a total of 7 miRNAs significantly increased in DSS colitis and predicted targets of BDNF. RT-qPCR was performed to confirm DSS induced colitis augmented levels of miRNA in cardiac tissue.