The heart is a unique organ that performs an incessant work to pump blood throughout the body. For this massive effort, it requires a very high supply of energy. Mitochondria are small components of the cells responsible for the production of energy. To produce energy, mitochondria from cardiac cells can use fuel of different origins (fats, glucose, proteins, etc). In normal circumstances, cardiac mitochondria use preferentially fats since they are more efficient in terms of quantify of energy produced. Recent data from our consortium has demonstrated that if the cardiac mitochondria switch the primary source of fuel (from fats to glucose), this results in a poor performance of the organ, which cannot supply the whole body with enough blood. This is known as heart failure. In experimental models of heart failure, we have demonstrated that a high fat diet is able to reverse the metabolic switch and make the cardiac cells mitochondria use again fats as the primary substrate to produce energy. This translates into a recovery of heart failure. In the present project, we plan to bring this concept to the human setting and perform a pilot clinical study where patients with heart failure are put in a dietary program consisting of high fat diet. The effect of this nutritional approach will be evaluated by state-of-the-art non-invasive imaging technology.

We will also perform studies in explanted hearts from patients with heart failure and in blood from experimental studies and patients. We will also perform additional experimental work in animal models of heart failure to study whether all fat-based diets exert the same effect on the heart. This project brings together a multidisciplinary team of cardiologists, experts in nutrition, imagers and industryen in HF patients