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Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) is characterized by left ventricular hypertrophy, increased ventricular stiffness and impaired diastolic filling. We investigated to what extent myocardial functional defects can be explained by alterations in the passive and active properties of human cardiac myofibrils. Skinned ventricular myocytes were prepared from patients with obstructive HCM (two patients with MYBPC3 mutations, one with a MYH7 mutation, and three with no mutation in either gene) and from four donors. Passive stiffness, viscous properties, and titin isoform expression were similar in HCM myocytes and donor myocytes. Maximal Ca2+-activated force was much lower in HCM myocytes (14 ± 1 kN/m2) than in donor myocytes (23 ± 3 kN/m2; P < 0.01), though cross-bridge kinetics (ktr) during maximal Ca2+ activation were 10% faster in HCM myocytes. Myofibrillar Ca2+ sensitivity in HCM myocytes (pCa50 = 6.40 ± 0.05) was higher than for donor myocytes (pCa50 = 6.09 ± 0.02; P < 0.001) and was associated with reduced phosphorylation of troponin-I (ser-23/24) and MyBP-C (ser-282) in HCM myocytes. These characteristics were common to all six HCM patients and may therefore represent a secondary consequence of the known and unknown underlying genetic variants. Some HCM patients did however exhibit an altered relationship between force and cross-bridge kinetics at submaximal Ca2+ concentrations, which may reflect the primary mutation. We conclude that the passive viscoelastic properties of the myocytes are unlikely to account for the increased stiffness of the HCM ventricle. However, the low maximum Ca2+-activated force and high Ca2+ sensitivity of the myofilaments are likely to contribute substantially to any systolic and diastolic dysfunction, respectively, in hearts of HCM patients.

Following its introduction as an antituberculosis agent close to 75 years ago, the use of para‐aminosalicylic acid (PAS) has been limited by gastrointestinal intolerance and multiple formulations were produced in attempts to reduce its occurrence. More recently, an enteric‐coated, granular, slow‐release PAS formulation (PASER) was introduced and is now in wide‐spread use for the treatment of drug‐resistant tuberculosis. The current PASER dosing regimen is based on recommendations derived from older studies using a variety of different PAS formulations and relegate PAS to a role as an exclusively bacteriostatic agent. However, there is ample evidence that if sufficiently high serum concentrations are reached, PAS can be bactericidal and that intolerance following once daily dosing, that aids the achievement of such concentrations, is no worse than that following intermittent daily dosing. In particular, prevention of resistance to companion drugs appears to be dependent on the size of the single dose, and hence the peak concentrations, and not on maintaining serum levels consistently above minimum inhibitory concentration. We present a narrative review of the development of PAS formulations, dosing practices, and published data regarding pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics and the relationship of PAS dosage to intolerance and efficacy. Our conclusions suggests that we are at present not using PAS to its maximum ability to contribute to regimen efficacy and protect companion drugs.

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