Abstract 19706: Cardiomyocyte-Specific Telomere Shortening is a Distinct Signature of Heart Failure in Human

Background: Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy(HCM) is a clinically heterogeneous disorderwith serious adverse outcomes. Despite efforts, current treatments entail only supportive strategies as detailed mechanisms behind HCM etiology are not fully uncovered. Extensive studies are carried out to link phenotype with genotype in patients. Our team recently recognized the role of distal ends of chromosomes, called telomeres, in unveiling cardiac disease phenotype. In proliferative cells, telomereshortening occurs with each cell division. Importantly, however, the role of telomereattrition in the setting of heart failure and specifically in human adult cardiomyocytes, as post-mitotic cells, is equivocal. Methods: We prospectively studied cardiac tissues from healthy individuals (n=27) and HCM patients (n=37) by optimizing telomerequantitative fluorescencein situ hybridization( Q-FISH), a highly sensitive method with single-cell resolution. Results: Our results demonstrate that patients with HCM have shorter tel...