Conclusion
These results demonstrate a close relationship between mitochondrial protein acetylation, physiologic dysfunction and metabolic disruption in FRDA hypertrophic cardiomyopathy and suggest that abnormal acetylation contributes to the pathophysiology of heart disease in FRDA. Mitochondrial protein acetylation may represent a therapeutic target for early intervention.
Methods
A conditional mouse model of FRDA cardiomyopathy with ablation of FXN (FXN KO) in the heart was compared to healthy controls at postnatal days 30, 45 and 65. We evaluated hearts using echocardiography, cardiac catheterization, histology, protein acetylation and expression.
Results
Acetylation was temporally progressive and paralleled evolution of heart failure in the FXN KO model. Increased acetylation preceded detectable abnormalities in cardiac function and progressed rapidly with age in the FXN KO mouse. Acetylation was also associated with cardiac fibrosis, mitochondrial damage, impaired fat metabolism, and diastolic and systolic dysfunction leading to heart failure. There was a strong inverse correlation between level of protein acetylation and heart function.