Postdoc start-up grant: Elucidating the Role of Five Adipokines in the Presence, Prediction, and Treatment of HFpEF

Heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF) is a complex condition that is associated with high morbidity and mortality. However, understanding of its underlying pathophysiology and therapeutic options are still lacking. During recent years, the inflammatory connections between adipose tissue and cardiovascular function that may contribute to HFpEF received increasing attention. Adipokines as secretory products of adipose tissue are discussed to serve as potential therapeutics or biomarkers in HFpEF, but the existing evidence is still sparse. The following project aims to investigate comprehensively the role of a carefully selected panel of established and novel adipokines (adiponectin, chemerin, galectin-3, leptin, resistin) in the presence, prediction, and treatment of HFpEF. Therefore, data from a general population sample (SHIP-Trend, N = 4420) as well as from a large randomized controlled trial of HFpEF-patients (Ex-DHF, N = 322), who were randomized to a 12-month supervised exercise training intervention, will be examined. The overall project is divided into three well-structured working packages. They will serve to proof if the adipokines are associated with the presence and prediction of HFpEF and if differences in adipokine concentrations of HFpEF-patients depending on a received exercise intervention are detectable. The influence of parameters that may contribute to the clinical heterogeneity of HFpEF will be considered.