Microvascular Rarefaction in the Sinoatrial Node: A Potential Mechanism for Pacemaker Dysfunction in Early HFpEF

Background: Microvascular rarefaction is a feature of heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF) that may underlie associated rhythm disturbances. Angiotensin II (AngII) signaling has been implicated, but its role in sinoatrial (SA) node dysfunction remains unclear.

Objectives: The authors tested whether changes in SA node microvascular architecture contribute to pacemaker dysfunction in early HFpEF.

Methods: Mice received a 28-day subcutaneous infusion of a sub-pressor dose of AngII. Electrocardiography, echocardiography, confocal imaging, spatial RNA detection, and optical mapping were used to assess SA node structure and function.

Results: Heart rate declined progressively during AngII infusion, with males falling from 605 ± 6 beats/min to 490 ± 6 beats/min and females from 646 ± 23 beats/min to 511 ± 10 beats/min by day 28. Bradycardia was accompanied by increased beat-to-beat variability: the percentage of consecutive heartbeats that differed in duration by >6 milliseconds increased from 3.5% ± 1.3% to 32.1% ± 4.5% in males and from 3.8% ± 1.1% to 27.7% ± 2.5% in females. These changes coincided with reduced microvessel density in the superior SA node (males: 6.1 ± 0.5 nm/μm3 to 3.9 ± 0.2 nm/μm3; females: 5.6 ± 0.4 to 2.8 ± 0.5 nm/μm3), whereas vessels in the inferior SA node remained unchanged. Despite preserved myocyte density, these changes were accompanied by up-regulation of oxidative stress and the hypoxia-inducible factor 1α and vascular endothelial growth factor signaling pathways.

Conclusions: These findings highlight microvascular rarefaction in the superior SA node as a key early event in HFpEF pathology. The loss of redundant vascular loops compromises metabolic support for pacemaking, illustrating a broader principle: rarefaction can impair excitability in metabolically demanding excitable tissues.