A novel rat model of heart failure induced by high methionine diet showing evidence of association between hyperhomocysteinemia and activation of NF-kappaB.

Heart failure is one of the most serious diseases worldwide, and can be caused by many factors, among them hyperhomocysteinemia can increase the risk for development of heart failure. In this study, we treated rats with high methionine diet (HMD), which can be conversed to homocysteine in human body, to induce a novel model of heart failure. We proved the successful establishment of this model by echocardiography and pathological evaluation at the termination of treatment. Ejection fraction and fractional shortening were significantly deceased after HMD treatment, while left ventricular volume in systole was increased. HMD treatment caused hypertrophy of cardiomyocytes, disarrangement of myofibers, and infiltration of inflammatory cells, as well as abundant apoptotic cells appeared after HMD treatment. Plasmatic homocysteine level was elevated after HMD treatment. Furthermore, through electrophoretic mobility shift assay and chromatin immunoprecipitation, the activity of NF-κB in nuclear extract was also significantly elevated, showing evidence of positive relationship between hyperhomocysteinemia and activation of NF-κB in HMD-induced heart failure. The successful development and validation of this model have made it a new tool for translational medical research of metabolic disorders-related cardiovascular disease.