Cardiac Energetics and Function in Normal Human Ageing

Overview

Normal aging is characterized by altered cardiovascular function. Our preliminary data with MR imaging and spectroscopy in normal subjects without cardiovascular disease or hypertension show that age-related cardiac dysfunction is characterized initially by impaired relaxation of the heart (40 - 60 years), and then at \> 60 years altered contraction and impaired myocardial energetics. For the first time, the investigators will test whether the functional and energetic effects of normal aging can be reversed by acutely reducing stiffness of peripheral blood vessels using an ACE inhibitor. This will potentially have important insights into how normal aging affects the heart, and how potential treatments could be used to attenuate this process.

Normal aging is characterized by altered cardiovascular function. Our preliminary data with MR imaging and spectroscopy in normal subjects without cardiovascular disease or hypertension show that age-related cardiac dysfunction is characterized initially by diastolic dysfunction (40 - 60 years), and then at \> 60 years altered systolic strains and impaired myocardial energetics. The investigators propose to study the mechanism of these findings in subjects with normal aging without any cardiovascular disease, hypothesizing that increased vascular stiffening contributes to impaired energetics and left ventricular function. For the first time, the investigators will test whether the functional and energetic effects of normal aging can be reversed by acutely reducing afterload using an ACE inhibitor. This will be tested at 2 ages (40-60 and \> 60 years), so that the intervention tests the hypothesis soon after the abnormalities develop (40-60 years - diastolic dysfunction; \> 60 years energetics and altered strains). This will potentially have important insights into how normal aging affects the heart, and how potential treatments could be used to attenuate this process.