Current methods to evaluate cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk are primarily based on assessments made in the resting state, but human circulation and metabolism evolved to respond to physiologic stress. The systemic response to exercise-induced perturbations may carry key prognostic information regarding cardiovascular health and reserve capacity. In particular, impaired cardiorespiratory fitness, representing low peak oxygen uptake, is a potent predictor of CVD outcomes across strata of risk. However, the extent to which impaired cardiorespiratory fitness reciprocally influences derangements in distinct metabolic pathways remains unclear. This application will combine two state-of-the-art techniques ? advanced cardiopulmonary exercise testing (CPET) with comprehensive gas exchange measures and high-throughput profiling of ~290 circulating metabolites (measured at rest and peak exercise) ? to deeply phenotype the metabolic responses to incremental exercise. We postulate that impaired cardiorespiratory fitness associates with discrete metabolite signatures, that these metabolite signatures relate to prevalent subclinical CVD traits and incident CVD outcomes, and that these signatures are modified by aerobic exercise training.
In Aim 1, we will evaluate the metabolite signatures of impaired cardiorespiratory fitness in 3040 participants enrolled in the community- based Framingham Heart Study. We will also analyze the relations of these metabolite signatures to clinical risk factors, novel risk markers, subclinical disease measures, and exercise-related excursions in select pathway biomarkers.
In Aim 2, we will examine the relations of these metabolite signatures to incident CVD and metabolic syndrome in the Framingham Heart Study, and to CVD hospitalization and death in 1040 patients in a hospital-based referral cohort.
In Aim 3, we will investigate the effect of aerobic exercise training on longitudinal changes in metabolite signatures of impaired cardiorespiratory fitness and CPET gas exchange variables in three distinct and clinically relevant hospital-based samples (total N=60). The overarching goal of this proposal is to evaluate the premise that the metabolic responses to exercise provide incremental information regarding the transition from cardiometabolic risk factors to overt CVD. This research will be accomplished in the setting of a comprehensive career development program designed to provide Dr. Nayor, an early career investigator and cardiologist, with the skills needed to become an independent physician- scientist in cardiovascular medicine. His long-term career goal is to use in-depth characterization of physiologic exercise responses to identify early CVD phenotypes that will further our understanding of disease pathogenesis and enable discovery of novel targets for prevention. An outstanding mentoring team and an advisory committee of established scientists in the fields of exercise physiology, metabolite profiling, and advanced epidemiological and biostatistical methods will guide the candidate in his transition to scientific independence over the course of the award period.

Public Health Relevance

Reduced fitness of the heart and lungs, and insufficient exercise/physical activity are important contributors to the risk of heart disease and stroke, but the physiological mechanisms underlying these relations are not well understood. We will measure small molecules in the blood that reflect body metabolism and examine how these blood markers change from before to after a bout of standardized exercise, and how such change may be a predictor of fitness of the heart and lungs. Our proposed research may offer novel insights into mechanisms to improve prediction of risk of heart disease and stroke, and perhaps identify new targets for treatment to lower risk.

Agency
National Institute of Health (NIH)
Institute
National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI)
Type
Mentored Patient-Oriented Research Career Development Award (K23)
Project #
5K23HL138260-05
Application #
9949761
Study Section
NHLBI Mentored Clinical and Basic Science Review Committee (MCBS)
Program Officer
Reis, Jared P
Project Start
2017-09-01
Project End
2022-06-30
Budget Start
2020-07-01
Budget End
2021-06-30
Support Year
5
Fiscal Year
2020
Total Cost
Indirect Cost
Name
Massachusetts General Hospital
Department
Type
DUNS #
073130411
City
Boston
State
MA
Country
United States
Zip Code
02114
Nayor, Matthew; Duncan, Meredith S; Musani, Solomon K et al. (2018) Incidence of cardiovascular disease in individuals affected by recent changes to US blood pressure treatment guidelines. J Hypertens 36:436-443
Savji, Nazir; Meijers, Wouter C; Bartz, Traci M et al. (2018) The Association of Obesity and Cardiometabolic Traits With Incident HFpEF and HFrEF. JACC Heart Fail 6:701-709
Nayor, Matthew; Enserro, Danielle M; Xanthakis, Vanessa et al. (2018) Comorbidities and Cardiometabolic Disease: Relationship With Longitudinal Changes in Diastolic Function. JACC Heart Fail 6:317-325
de Boer, Rudolf A; Nayor, Matthew; deFilippi, Christopher R et al. (2018) Association of Cardiovascular Biomarkers With Incident Heart Failure With Preserved and Reduced Ejection Fraction. JAMA Cardiol 3:215-224