Integrated Omic Analysis of a Guinea Pig Model of Heart Failure and Sudden Cardiac Death

Sudden cardiac death (SCD) associated with heart failure (HF) is a multifactorial problem requiring a systems level approach applied to suitable experimental animal models with features of the human disease. Here we examine key regulatory pathways underlying the transition from compensated hypertrophy (HYP) to decompensated HF and SCD by integrated analysis of the transcriptome, proteome and metabolome. In a guinea pig model of acquired long QT syndrome and HF/SCD, relative protein abundances from sham-operated, HYP and HF hearts were assessed using isobaric tags for relative and absolute quantification (iTRAQ), prior to liquid chromatography and tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS). Metabolites were quantified by LC-MS/MS or gas chromatography coupled to MS (GC-MS). Transcriptome profiles were obtained using DNA microarrays. The guinea pig HF proteome exhibited classic biosignatures of cardiac HYP, left ventricular dysfunction, fibrosis, cellular degeneration, inflammation and extravasation. Fatty acid metabolism, mitochondrial transcription/translation factors, antioxidant enzymes, and other mitochondrial processes, were downregulated in HF, but not HYP. Proteins upregulated in HF are consistent with extracellular matrix remodeling, cytoskeletal remodeling, and acute phase inflammation markers. Among metabolites, downregulation of acyl-carnitines was observed in HYP, while fatty acids accumulated in HF. Levels of the tricarboxylic acid (TCA) cycle metabolite, citrate, and the potent inhibitor, 2-methylcitrate, increased upon transition from HYP to HF. Correlation of the magnitude of transcript and protein changes in HF is weak (R2=0.23), indicating that targeting transcript/proteome may reveal inform post-transcriptional gene regulation in HF. Proteome/Metabolome integration suggests metabolic bottlenecks in fatty acyl-CoA processing by carnitine palmitoyl transferase (CPT1B) as well as TCA cycle inhibition. We present a model in which hallmarks of acute signaling in HF, including Ca2+ dysregulation and low cAMP levels, are coupled to mitochondrial metabolic and antioxidant defects, through a CREB/PGC1-alpha transcriptional axis. 18 total samples were analyzed. The experiment consisted of 3 treatment groups: 1) HYP (ACi-2wk), 2) HF (ACi-4w) 3) SHAM (Shami-4w). Each group consisted of 6 samples. Samples were compared, pairwise using an ANOVA to obtain an estimate of variance, followed by unpaired two-sample t-test using PARTEK Genomics Suite (Genomics Solutions). Specifically comparisons were HYP vs. Sham, HF vs. Sham and HF vs. HYP. False discovery was assessed for named genes by the method of Story (Journal of the Royal Statistical Society: Series B (Statistical Methodology). 2002;64(3):479-98.)