Project description:A 70-year-old woman was admitted to our hospital complaining of shortness of breath. She was diagnosed with acute decompensated heart failure due to left ventricular dysfunction. Her symptoms began to improve with standard therapy for heart failure with diuretics, noninvasive pressure ventilation, and inotropes, but paroxysmal atrial fibrillation and premature ventricular contractions (PVCs) occurred. After treatment with amiodarone, the number of PVCs decreased, and the left ventricular wall motion gradually improved. However, on day 28, ventricular fibrillation and cardiopulmonary arrest occurred suddenly, and she could not be resuscitated. She was diagnosed with giant cell myocarditis via an autopsy. The autopsy revealed diffuse inflammatory cells that comprised giant cells and eosinophils as well as cellular degeneration and necrosis. <Learning objective: We herein report a case of sudden cardiac death due to giant cell myocarditis diagnosed at an autopsy.>.
Project description:Mutations in cardiac ryanodine receptor (RyR2) are linked to catecholaminergic polymorphic ventricular tachycardia (CPVT). Most CPVT RyR2 mutations characterized are gain-of-function (GOF), indicating enhanced RyR2 function as a major cause of CPVT. Loss-of-function (LOF) RyR2 mutations have also been identified and are linked to a distinct entity of cardiac arrhythmia termed RyR2 Ca2+ release deficiency syndrome (CRDS). Exercise stress testing (EST) is routinely used to diagnose CPVT, but it is ineffective for CRDS. There is currently no effective diagnostic tool for CRDS in humans. An alternative strategy to assess the risk for CRDS is to directly determine the functional impact of the associated RyR2 mutations. To this end, we have functionally screened 18 RyR2 mutations that are associated with idiopathic ventricular fibrillation (IVF) or sudden death. We found two additional RyR2 LOF mutations E4146K and G4935R. The E4146K mutation markedly suppressed caffeine activation of RyR2 and abolished store overload induced Ca2+ release (SOICR) in human embryonic kidney 293 (HEK293) cells. E4146K also severely reduced cytosolic Ca2+ activation and abolished luminal Ca2+ activation of single RyR2 channels. The G4935R mutation completely abolished caffeine activation of and [3H]ryanodine binding to RyR2. Co-expression studies showed that the G4935R mutation exerted dominant negative impact on the RyR2 wildtype (WT) channel. Interestingly, the RyR2-G4935R mutant carrier had a negative EST, and the E4146K carrier had a family history of sudden death during sleep, which are different from phenotypes of typical CPVT. Thus, our data further support the link between RyR2 LOF and a new entity of cardiac arrhythmias distinct from CPVT.
Project description:The risk of having atrial fibrillation (AF) is associated with alcohol intake. However, it is not clear whether sudden cardiac arrest (SCA) and ventricular arrhythmia (VA) including ventricular tachycardia, flutter, or fibrillation have similar associations with alcohol. We aimed to evaluate the association of alcohol intake with all-cause death, new-onset AF, VA, and SCA using single cohort with a sufficient sample size. A total of 3,990,373 people without a prior history of AF, VAs, or SCA was enrolled in this study based on nationwide health check-up in 2009. We classified the participants into four groups according to weekly alcohol consumption, and evaluated the association of alcohol consumption with each outcome. We observed a significant association between mild (hazard ratio [HR] = 0.826; 95% confidence interval [CI] = 0.815-0.838) to moderate (HR = 0.930; 95% CI = 0.912-0.947) drinking with decreased risk of all-cause mortality. However heavy drinking (HR = 1.108; 95% CI = 1.087-1.129) was associated with increased all-cause death. The risk of new-onset AF was significantly associated with moderate (HR = 1.129; 95% CI = 1.097-1.161) and heavy (HR = 1.298; 95% CI = 1.261-1.337) drinking. However, the risk of SCA showed negative association with all degrees of alcohol intake: 20% (HR = 0.803; 95% CI = 0.769-0.839), 15% (HR = 0.853; 95% CI = 0.806-0.902), and 8% (HR = 0.918; 95% CI = 0.866-0.974) lower risk for mild, moderate, and heavy drinkers, respectively. Mild drinking was associated with reduced risk of VA with moderate and heavy drinking having no associations. In conclusion, the association between alcohol and various outcomes in this study were heterogeneous. Alcohol might have different influences on various cardiac disorders.
Project description:BackgroundPotentially lethal and heritable cardiomyopathies and cardiac channelopathies are caused by heterogeneous autosomal dominant mutations in over 50 distinct genes, and multiple genes are responsible for a given disease. Clinical genetic tests are available for several of the inherited cardiac diseases and clinical investigations guide which test to order. This study describes a family with cardiac disease in which marked clinical diversity exists. In the absence of a unified clinical diagnosis, we used exome sequencing to identify a causal mutation.MethodsClinical evaluation of family members was performed, including physical examination, electrocardiography, 2D transthoracic echocardiography and review of autopsy records. Exome sequencing was performed on a clinically affected individual and co-segregation studies and haplotype analysis were performed to further confirm pathogenicity.ResultsClinically affected members showed marked cardiac phenotype heterogeneity. While some individuals were asymptomatic, other presentations included left ventricular non-compaction, a resuscitated cardiac arrest due to idiopathic ventricular fibrillation, dilated cardiomyopathy, and sudden unexplained death. Whole exome sequencing identified an Ala119Thr mutation in the alpha-actinin-2 (ACTN2) gene that segregated with disease. Haplotype analysis showed that this mutation segregated with an identical haplotype in a second, previously described family with clinically diverse cardiac disease, and is likely inherited from a common ancestor.ConclusionsMutations in the ACTN2 gene can be responsible for marked cardiac phenotype heterogeneity in families. The diverse mechanistic roles of ACTN2 in the cardiac Z-disc may explain this heterogeneous clinical presentation. Exome sequencing is a useful adjunct to cardiac genetic testing in families with mixed clinical presentations.
Project description:Different forms of ventricular arrhythmias have been linked to mutations in the cardiac ryanodine receptor (RyR)2, but the molecular basis for this phenotypic heterogeneity is unknown. We have recently demonstrated that an enhanced sensitivity to luminal Ca(2+) and an increased propensity for spontaneous Ca(2+) release or store-overload-induced Ca(2+) release (SOICR) are common defects of RyR2 mutations associated with catecholaminergic polymorphic or bidirectional ventricular tachycardia. Here, we investigated the properties of a unique RyR2 mutation associated with catecholaminergic idiopathic ventricular fibrillation, A4860G. Single-channel analyses revealed that, unlike all other disease-linked RyR2 mutations characterized previously, the A4860G mutation diminished the response of RyR2 to activation by luminal Ca(2+), but had little effect on the sensitivity of the channel to activation by cytosolic Ca(2+). This specific impact of the A4860G mutation indicates that the luminal Ca(2+) activation of RyR2 is distinct from its cytosolic Ca(2+) activation. Stable, inducible HEK293 cells expressing the A4860G mutant showed caffeine-induced Ca(2+) release but exhibited no SOICR. Importantly, HL-1 cardiac cells transfected with the A4860G mutant displayed attenuated SOICR activity compared with cells transfected with RyR2 WT. These observations provide the first evidence that a loss of luminal Ca(2+) activation and SOICR activity can cause ventricular fibrillation and sudden death. These findings also indicate that although suppressing enhanced SOICR is a promising antiarrhythmic strategy, its oversuppression can also lead to arrhythmias.
Project description:Background The cardiac ryanodine receptor type 2 (RyR2) is a large homotetramer, located in the sarcoplasmic reticulum (SR), which releases Ca2+ from the SR during systole. The molecular mechanism underlying Ca2+ sensing and gating of the RyR2 channel in health and disease is only partially elucidated. Catecholaminergic Polymorphic Ventricular Tachycardia (CPVT1) is the most prevalent syndrome caused by RyR2 mutations. Methods and Results This study involves investigation of a family with 4 cases of ventricular fibrillation and sudden death and physiological tests in HEK 293 cells and normal mode analysis (NMA) computation. We found 4 clinically affected members who were homozygous for a novel RyR2 mutation, G3118R, whereas their heterozygous relatives are asymptomatic. G3118R is located in the periphery of the protein, far from the mutation hotspot regions. HEK293 cells harboring G3118R mutation inhibited Ca2+ release in response to increasing doses of caffeine, but decreased the termination threshold for store-overload-induced Ca2+ release, thus increasing the fractional Ca2+ release in response to increasing extracellular Ca2+. NMA showed that G3118 affects RyR2 tetramer in a dose-dependent manner, whereas in the model of homozygous mutant RyR2, the highest entropic values are assigned to the pore and the central regions of the protein. Conclusions RyR2 G3118R is related to ventricular fibrillation and sudden death in recessive mode of inheritance and has an effect of gain of function on the protein. Despite a peripheral location, it has an allosteric effect on the stability of central and pore regions in a dose-effect manner.
Project description:Sudden cardiac death (SCD) is the most devastating manifestation of ventricular arrhythmias (VAs), and is the leading cause of mortality among atrial fibrillation (AF) patients. The goal of the present study was to investigate the incidence of SCD/VAs amongst patients with and without AF. We also aimed to identify important risk factors of SCD/VAs among AF patients. Using the "National Health Insurance Research Database" in Taiwan, a total of 352,656 AF and 352,656 non-AF patients without antecedent SCD/VAs were identified. The annual risk of SCD/VAs was higher in AF than non-AF groups (0.97% versus 0.47%) with an adjusted hazard ratio (HR) of 1.64. The increased risk of SCD/VAs in AF patients was consistently observed in different age strata, various comorbidities and patients without use of class I/III anti-arrhythmic drugs or digoxin. Among AF patients, age ≥75 years, congestive heart failure, hypertension, diabetes mellitus, previous stroke/transient ischemic attack, vascular diseases, chronic kidney disease and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease were important risk factors for SCD/VAs. In conclusion, the risk of SCD/VAs amongst AF patients was 1.64-fold higher compared to non-AF patients, which was associated with the number of clinical risk factors associated with the particular AF patient.
Project description:Unexpected child death investigation is a difficult area of forensic practice in view of the wide range of possible genetic, congenital, and acquired natural and nonnatural causes. Idiopathic infantile arterial calcification (IIAC) is a rare autosomic recessive disease usually diagnosed postmortem. Inactivating mutations of the ENPP1 gene were described in 80% of the cases with IIAC. We report a case of a 5-year-old girl submitted to a forensic autopsy due to sudden death and possible medical negligence/parents child abuse. Major alterations found (intimal proliferation and deposition of calcium hydroxyapatite around the internal elastic lamina and media of arteries; acute myocardial infarct, stenotic and calcified coronary artery; perivascular and interstitial myocardial fibrosis; and subendocardial fibroelastosis) were diagnostic of IIAC. We reviewed IIAC cases published in the English literature and highlight the importance of adequate autopsy evaluation in cases of sudden child death.
Project description:Catecholaminergic polymorphic ventricular tachycardia (CPVT) is a devastating inherited disorder characterized by episodic syncope and/or sudden cardiac arrest during exercise or acute emotion in individuals without structural cardiac abnormalities. Although rare, CPVT is suspected to cause a substantial part of sudden cardiac deaths in young individuals. Mutations in RYR2, encoding the cardiac sarcoplasmic calcium channel, have been identified as causative in approximately half of all dominantly inherited CPVT cases. Applying a genome-wide linkage analysis in a large Swedish family with a severe dominantly inherited form of CPVT-like arrhythmias, we mapped the disease locus to chromosome 14q31-32. Sequencing CALM1 encoding calmodulin revealed a heterozygous missense mutation (c.161A>T [p.Asn53Ile]) segregating with the disease. A second, de novo, missense mutation (c.293A>G [p.Asn97Ser]) was subsequently identified in an individual of Iraqi origin; this individual was diagnosed with CPVT from a screening of 61 arrhythmia samples with no identified RYR2 mutations. Both CALM1 substitutions demonstrated compromised calcium binding, and p.Asn97Ser displayed an aberrant interaction with the RYR2 calmodulin-binding-domain peptide at low calcium concentrations. We conclude that calmodulin mutations can cause severe cardiac arrhythmia and that the calmodulin genes are candidates for genetic screening of individual cases and families with idiopathic ventricular tachycardia and unexplained sudden cardiac death.
Project description:BACKGROUND:Sudden death in children is a tragic event that often remains unexplained after comprehensive investigation. We report two asymptomatic siblings who died unexpectedly at approximately 1 year of age found to have biallelic (compound heterozygous) variants in PPA2. METHODS:The index case, parents, and sister were enrolled in the Sudden Unexplained Death in Childhood Registry and Research Collaborative, which included next-generation genetic screening. Prior published cases of PPA2 variants, along with the known biology of PPA2, were also summarized. RESULTS:Whole exome sequencing in both siblings revealed biallelic rare missense variants in PPA2: c.182C > T (p.Ser61Phe) and c.380G > T (p.Arg127Leu). PPA2 encodes a mitochondrially located inorganic pyrophosphatase implicated in progressive and lethal cardiomyopathies. As a regulator and supplier of inorganic phosphate, PPA2 is central to phosphate metabolism. Biological roles include the following: mtDNA maintenance; oxidative phosphorylation and generation of ATP; reactive oxygen species homeostasis; mitochondrial membrane potential regulation; and possibly, retrograde signaling between mitochondria and nucleus. CONCLUSIONS:Two healthy and asymptomatic sisters died unexpectedly at ages 12 and 10 months, and were diagnosed by molecular autopsy to carry biallelic variants in PPA2. Our cases add additional details to those reported thus far, and broaden the spectrum of clinical and molecular features of PPA2 variants.