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Dr. Marsha Cole will be presenting a seminar titled Conjugated Linoleic Acid and Nitrite Co-treatment Is Cardioprotective in Myocardial Injury.
Abstract: Coronary heart disease is the most common type of cardiovascular disease and remains the leading cause of death in the US, costing more than $109 billion each year. Approximately 720,000 individuals suffer a heart attack or myocardial infarction (MI) annually, a common complication associated with coronary artery disease. Currently there are no FDA-approved drugs for MI, as most therapies focus on preventative measures such as weight loss, exercise and healthy diet. Considering the initiative to replace saturated fats with so-called ‘healthy fats’ to promote overall weight loss and maintenance, the health effects of fatty acids such as conjugated linoleic acid (cLA) require investigation. Recent evidence suggests that cLA is a preferred substrate for nitration reactions, facilitated by mitochondria and macrophage activation in the presence of nitrite. Further, nitration of unsaturated fatty acids are known to promote anti-inflammatory actions and mediate cardioprotection in models of cardiac injury. Our work has established that cLA lowers overall survival following MI, however nitrite supplementation leads to increased survival and provides cardioprotection. These studies explore the hypothesis that co-treatment with cLA and nitrite is cardioprotective via both mitochondrial and nuclear-mediated mechanisms.
Faculty Host: Dr. Allan Butterfield