Special Issue "Epigenetics and Novel Opportunities for Precision Medicine and Personalized Therapy of Major Cardiovascular Diseases"

A special issue of Biomedicines (ISSN 2227-9059). This special issue belongs to the section "Molecular Genetics and Genetic Diseases".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 June 2023) | Viewed by 3406

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Giuditta Benincasa
E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Advanced Medical and Surgical Sciences (DAMSS), University of Campania "Luigi Vanvitelli", 80138 Naples, Italy
Interests: epigenetics; DNA methylation; cardiovascular diseases; network medicine
Department of Precision Medicine, University of Campania “Luigi Vanvitelli”, Via L. De Crecchio 7, 80138 Naples, Italy
Interests: anthocyanin; metabolite; natural compounds; antioxidant; cancer; cell proliferation; cell differentiation; bioactive molecules; epigenetics; epidrugs; molecular simulations; endocrine disruptors
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Cardiovascular Research Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY 10029, USA
Interests: epigenetics; gene regulation; DNA methylation; histone modification; pulmonary hypertension; gene therapy
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

In the era of cardiovascular precision medicine and personalized therapy, physicians are motivated to identify customized approaches. The latest progress indicates that direct epigenetic-sensitive modifications (DNA methylation and histone modifications) may be useful to shift away from diagnosis in advanced, symptomatic states towards an earlier prediction of cardiac events. Profiling patient-derived epigenetic changes at the genome-wide level in conjunction with clinical data will lead to the identification of predictive, diagnostic, and prognostic biomarkers as well as additional therapeutic strategies for major cardiovascular diseases. “Omics” platforms, network analysis, and artificial intelligence represent the most useful integrated approaches to reach cardiovascular precision medicine and personalized therapy. The first goal of this Special Issue is to collect big data generated from epigenome-wide association studies (EWAS) in order to identify novel molecular routes involved in the pathogenesis of major cardiovascular diseases that have the highest potential of being translated into biomarkers for clinical practice. Our second aim is to compile data on natural compounds, which may act as “epidrugs” able to prevent or reverse cardiac damage via remodeling the epigenome, mainly in cardiac and endothelial cells.

Dr. Giuditta Benincasa
Prof. Dr. Paola Bontempo
Dr. Malik Bisserier
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

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Keywords

  • cardiovascular diseases
  • clinical epigenetics
  • biomarkers
  • drug targets
  • epigenome-wide association studies
  • DNA methylation
  • histone modification
  • natural compounds
  • epidrugs
  • bioinformatics
  • network analysis
  • artificial intelligence

Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

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Article
Plasma hsa-miR-22-3p Might Serve as an Early Predictor of Ventricular Function Recovery after ST-Elevation Acute Myocardial Infarction
Biomedicines 2023, 11(8), 2289; https://doi.org/10.3390/biomedicines11082289 - 17 Aug 2023
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Abstract
Left ventricle remodeling (LVR) after acute myocardial infarction (aMI) leads to impairment of both systolic and diastolic function, a major contributor to heart failure (HF). Despite extensive research, predicting post-aMI LVR and HF is still a challenge. Several circulant microRNAs have been proposed [...] Read more.
Left ventricle remodeling (LVR) after acute myocardial infarction (aMI) leads to impairment of both systolic and diastolic function, a major contributor to heart failure (HF). Despite extensive research, predicting post-aMI LVR and HF is still a challenge. Several circulant microRNAs have been proposed as LVR predictors; however, their clinical value is controversial. Here, we used real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) to quantify hsa-miR-22-3p (miR-22) plasma levels on the first day of hospital admission of ST-elevation aMI (STEMI) patients. We analyzed miR-22 correlation to the patients’ clinical and paraclinical variables and evaluated its ability to discriminate between post-aMI LVR and non-LVR. We show that miR-22 is an excellent aMI discriminator and can distinguish between LVR and non-LVR patients. The discriminative performance of miR-22 significantly improves the predictive power of a multiple logistic regression model based on four continuous variables (baseline ejection fraction and end-diastolic volume, CK-MB, and troponin). Furthermore, we found that diabetes mellitus, hematocrit level, and the number of erythrocytes significantly influence its levels. These data suggest that miR-22 might be used as a predictor of ventricular function recovery in STEMI patients. Full article
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Article
Cholesterol-Related lncRNAs as Response Predictors of Atorvastatin Treatment in Chilean Hypercholesterolemic Patients: A Pilot Study
Biomedicines 2023, 11(3), 742; https://doi.org/10.3390/biomedicines11030742 - 01 Mar 2023
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Abstract
Statins are currently the treatment of choice for hypercholesterolemia. However, wide interindividual variability has been observed in the response to treatment. Recent studies have reported the role of lncRNAs in the metabolism of lipids; nevertheless, there are few studies to date that show [...] Read more.
Statins are currently the treatment of choice for hypercholesterolemia. However, wide interindividual variability has been observed in the response to treatment. Recent studies have reported the role of lncRNAs in the metabolism of lipids; nevertheless, there are few studies to date that show their role in the response to treatment with statins. Thus, the aim of this study was to assess the levels of expression of three lncRNAs (RP1-13D10.2; MANTIS; lncHR1) associated with genes involved in cholesterol homeostasis in leukocyte cells of hypercholesterolemic patients after treatment with atorvastatin and compare them with levels in subjects with normal cholesterol levels. A secondary aim was to assess the levels of expression in monocytic THP-1 cells differentiated to macrophages. The study included 20 subjects with normal cholesterol (NC) levels and 20 individuals with hypercholesterolemia (HC). The HC patients were treated with atorvastatin (20 mg/day/4 weeks). THP-1 cells were differentiated to macrophages with PMA and treated with different doses of atorvastatin for 24 h. Expression of lncRNAs was determined by RT-qPCR. The lncRNAs RP1-13D10.2 (p < 0.0001), MANTIS (p = 0.0013) and lncHR1 (p < 0.0001) presented increased expression in HC subjects compared with NC subjects. Furthermore, atorvastatin had a negative regulatory effect on the expression of lncHR1 (p < 0.0001) in HC subjects after treatment. In vitro, all the lncRNAs showed significant differences in expression after atorvastatin treatment. Our findings show that the lncRNAs tested present differential expression in HC patients and play a role in the variability reported in the response to atorvastatin treatment. Further research is needed to clarify the biological impact of these lncRNAs on cholesterol homeostasis and treatment with statins. Full article
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Review

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Review
The Current Therapeutic Role of Chromatin Remodeling for the Prognosis and Treatment of Heart Failure
Biomedicines 2023, 11(2), 579; https://doi.org/10.3390/biomedicines11020579 - 16 Feb 2023
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Abstract
Cardiovascular diseases are a major cause of death globally, with no cure to date. Many interventions have been studied and suggested, of which epigenetics and chromatin remodeling have been the most promising. Over the last decade, major advancements have been made in the [...] Read more.
Cardiovascular diseases are a major cause of death globally, with no cure to date. Many interventions have been studied and suggested, of which epigenetics and chromatin remodeling have been the most promising. Over the last decade, major advancements have been made in the field of chromatin remodeling, particularly for the treatment of heart failure, because of innovations in bioinformatics and gene therapy. Specifically, understanding changes to the chromatin architecture have been shown to alter cardiac disease progression via variations in genomic sequencing, targeting cardiac genes, using RNA molecules, and utilizing chromatin remodeler complexes. By understanding these chromatin remodeling mechanisms in an injured heart, treatments for heart failure have been suggested through individualized pharmaceutical interventions as well as biomarkers for major disease states. By understanding the current roles of chromatin remodeling in heart failure, a potential therapeutic approach may be discovered in the future. Full article
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