An abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) is a life‑threatening disease associated with a high mortality rate. At present, surgery or minimally invasive interventions are used in clinical treatment, especially for small aneurysms. However, the benefits of …

Patients with type 2 diabetes treated with Sodium glucose transporter 2 (SGLT2) inhibitors show reduced mortality and hospitalization for heart failure (HF). SGLT2 inhibitors are considered to activate multiple cardioprotective pathways; however, …

Background: Diabetic cardiomyopathy (DCM) is strongly linked to microvascular disease, renin-angiotensin system (RAS) activation, cardiac inflammation and cell apoptosis. Irbesartan is an angiotensin II (Ang II) receptor antagonist in RAS system, which …

Background: Myocardial ischemia-reperfusion injury is a type of myocardial ischemia that has a significant impact on patients’ health. We aimed to explore the protective effect of mesenchymal stem cell-derived exosomes (MSC-EXOs) on myocardial …

Transverse aortic constriction (TAC) in mice is the most popular model to mimic pressure overload heart disease. In this study, we developed a convenient, quick, and less invasive new TAC mice model. Briefly, after anesthetization, endotracheal intubation …

Chronic hypoxia is a major driver of cardiovascular complications, including heart failure. The nitric oxide (NO) – soluble guanylyl cyclase (sGC) – cyclic guanosine monophosphate (cGMP) pathway is integral to vascular tone maintenance. Specifically, NO …

In hypoplastic left heart syndrome (HLHS), the mechanisms leading to left heart hypoplasia and their associated fetal abnormalities are largely unknown. Current animal models have limited utility in resolving these questions as they either do not fully …

Objective: An Abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA), a deadly disease in elderly population, is featured by expansion of aortic diameter, degradation and weakening of vasculature. Its common and significant characteristics are disarray and inflammation in …

The coagulation protein tissue factor (TF) regulates inflammation and angiogenesis via its cytoplasmic domain in infection, cancer and diabetes. While TF is highly abundant in the heart and is implicated in cardiac pathology, the contribution of its …

Photoacoustic (PA) imaging is a functional and molecular imaging technique capable of high sensitivity and spatiotemporal resolution at depth. Widespread use of PA imaging, however, is limited by currently available contrast agents, which either lack …