Biomarkers of Sudden Death and Progressive Heart Failure

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Summary/Abstract: This application addresses Challenge Area (03) Biomarker Discovery and Validation and specific Challenge Topic, 03-HL-101*: Identify and validate clinically relevant, quantifiable biomarkers of diagnostic and therapeutic responses for blood, vascular, cardiac, and respiratory tract dysfunction. Heart failure (HF) remains a leading cause of morbidity and mortality in Western countries, affecting more than 5 million people in the United States alone. HF patients are at risk of dying primarily of sudden cardiac death (SCD) or progressive pump failure. The overall goals of this proposal are to develop transcriptomic (mRNA and miR) biomarkers to aid identification of patients that are truly at high risk of (a) SCD and (b) worsening HF among a group of patients that is considered to be at a high risk for SCD and HF based on their low LV ejection fraction. The prognosis of patients diagnosed with HF is poor and current methods used to predict the clinical course and assess risk of SCD or overall mortality are limited. The frontline management of lethal arrhythmias and SCD in patients with a left ventricular ejection fraction