Rodent Heart Failure Models

Creative Biolabs provides state-of-the-art technology platforms and a number of rodent models for evaluating the effects of drugs in heart failure. These models cover surgical models, chemical-induced cardiomyopathy models, and spontaneous models. Moreover, we can meet a variety of study endpoints to generate the high-quality, reproducible data your projects require.

Introduction of Heart Failure

Heart failure is one of the major health and economic burdens in both developing and developed countries. It is characterized by reduced cardiac output and consequently, the heart is unable to meet perfusion demands of the body. It is a complex heterogeneous disorder that can result from different conditions, including primary cardiomyopathy, myocardial infarction, hypertension, and valve disorders. Clinical presentation may be insidious or acute, with decreased exercise tolerance and shortness of breath. Current treatment includes simultaneous administration of angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors (acting principally by vasodilatation), β blockers (slowing the heart rate) and spironolactone (vasodilatation and diuresis). Although this combination reduces death resulting from heart failure, there are no truly ‘disease modifying’ drugs for heart failure.

Fig.1 Pathophysiologic mechanisms of HF and novel therapeutic targets of action. (Bonsu et al. 2016)

Available Rodent Heart Failure Models at Creative Biolabs

Small rodent animals offer many advantages such as small size, easy availability, and low maintenance cost, thus they are widely used to explore the pathophysiology of heart failure and to develop novel therapies that might slow the progression of this prevalent and fatal disease. Creative Biolabs offers the following rodent heart failure models to evaluate novel therapies for the treatment of this disease:

Myocardial Ischemia-Induced Heart Failure - Surgical clipping of a coronary artery, typically the left anterior descending artery (LADL), models heart failure following myocardial infarction (MI). This model can be induced in both rats and mice, and it is the most preferred and acceptable heart failure and MI model in the decades to follow. Coronary artery ligation offers advantages such as better reproducibility and heart failure similar to human heart failure.

Pressure Overload Models - Pressure overload-induced left ventricular hypertrophy and heart failure can be produced by transverse aortic banding and abdominal aortic banding in rodents. The transverse aortic constriction mice model and the ascending aortic banding rat model are the most widely used pressure overload models. Pressure overload models are valuable to study hypertrophy and the transition to heart failure.

Chemical-Induced Cardiomyopathy Models - Cytotoxic drugs such as doxorubicin are known cardiotoxins in humans and have been used to induce heart failure syndromes in both and rats. Doxorubicin-induced cardiac toxicity is characterized by ventricular wall thinning and dilation of the left ventricular chamber. SHR rats are more sensitive than normal rats, and thus are more suitable for doxorubicin-induced dilated cardiomyopathy. This model has properties of being simple, non-invasive, economical and has a short time course of induction of the heart failure.

Creative Biolabs’ genetically engineering platform offers the availability of a great number of relevant transgenic and knockout (KO) mouse and rat strains. Thus, if your research requires the use of genetically modified models, we can work with to customize a model to suit your specific needs using the latest model creation techniques.

Assessments for Drug Evaluation

We utilize a wide range of techniques to deliver end-point analysis of drug efficacy, including but are not limited to:

• Assessment of cardiac functions (e.g., echocardiography, MRI)
• Telemetry for blood pressure, electrocardiogram
• Biochemical analysis
• Histological analysis

Additionally, Creative Biolabs offers other rodent cardiovascular models that you may be interested in:

• Rodent Atherosclerosis Models
• Rodent Diabetic Complication Models
• Rodent Hypertension Models
• Rodent Myocardial Infarction Models
• Rodent Thrombosis Models

Creative Biolabs provides services with the advantage of customized experimental designs, expert scientific guidance, and consultancy to advance your heart failure studies. With abundant experience accumulated in the completion of a number of projects, we are confident in being an expert partner to move your studies to the next phase. Contact us to discuss your project and experience the great value of our services.

Reference

1. Bonsu, K. O.; et al. Review of novel therapeutic targets for improving heart failure treatment based on experimental and clinical studies[J]. Therapeutics & Clinical Risk Management. 2016, 12(Issue 1):887-906.

For Research Use Only.