Body wasting is a serious complication that affects a large proportion of patients with heart failure. Muscle wasting, also known as sarcopenia, is the loss of muscle mass and strength, whereas cachexia describes loss of weight. After reaching guideline-recommended doses of heart failure therapies, the most promising approach to treating body wasting seems to be combined therapy that includes exercise, nutritional counselling, and drug treatment. Nutritional considerations include avoiding excessive salt and fluid intake, and replenishment of deficiencies in trace elements. Administration of omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids is beneficial in selected patients. High-calorific nutritional supplements can also be useful. The prescription of aerobic exercise training that provokes mild or moderate breathlessness has good scientific support. Drugs with potential benefit in the treatment of body wasting that have been tested in clinical studies in patients with heart failure include testosterone, ghrelin, recombinant human growth hormone, essential amino acids, and β-adrenergic receptor agonists. In this Review, we summarize the pathophysiological mechanisms of muscle wasting and cachexia in heart failure, and highlight the potential treatment strategies. We aim to provide clinicians with the relevant information on body wasting to understand and treat these conditions in patients with heart failure.

This paper describes the use of common Lewis acids supported in imidazolium-based ionic liquids as the catalysts to promote the Biginelli reaction. The ionic liquid effect and the reaction mechanism are discussed on the basis of nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR), electrospray ionization mass spectrometry (ESI-MS), and theoretical calculations. Indeed, the results showed that the ionic medium plays a fundamental role in the synthesis of biologically active dihydropyrimidinones due to the stabilization of the charged intermediates proposed in the mechanism. When conducted in an ionic liquid as solvent, the reaction mechanism is more complex than in other Lewis acid catalyzed Biginelli reactions.

The last several years have seen increasing interest in understanding cachexia, muscle wasting, and physical frailty across the broad spectrum of patients with cardiovascular illnesses. This interest originally started in the field of heart failure, but has recently been extended to other areas such as atrial fibrillation, coronary artery disease, peripheral artery disease as well as to patients after cardiac surgery or transcatheter aortic valve implantation. Tissue wasting and frailty are prevalent among many of the affected patients. The ageing process itself and concomitant cardiovascular illness decrease lean mass while fat mass is relatively preserved, making elderly patients particularly prone to develop wasting syndromes and frailty. The aim of this review is to provide an overview of the available knowledge of body wasting and physical frailty in patients with cardiovascular illness, particularly focussing on patients with heart failure in whom most of the available data have been gathered. In addition, mechanisms of wasting and possible therapeutic targets are discussed.

AimsWe aimed to assess determinants of anorexia, that is loss of appetite in patients with heart failure (HF) and aimed to further elucidate the association between anorexia, functional capacity, and outcomes in affected patients.Methods and resultsWe assessed anorexia status among 166 patients with HF (25 female, 66 ± 12 years) who participated in the Studies Investigating Co‐morbidities Aggravating HF. Anorexia was assessed by a 6‐point Likert scale (ranging from 0 to 5), wherein values ≥1 indicate anorexia. Functional capacity was assessed as peak oxygen uptake (peak VO2), 6 min walk test, and short physical performance battery test. A total of 57 patients (34%) reported any anorexia, and these patients showed lower values of peak VO2, 6 min walk distance, and short physical performance battery score (all P < 0.05). Using multivariate analysis adjusting for clinically important factors, only high‐sensitivity C‐reactive protein [odds ratio (OR) 1.24, P = 0.04], use of loop diuretics (OR 5.76, P = 0.03), and the presence of cachexia (OR 2.53, P = 0.04) remained independent predictors of anorexia. A total of 22 patients (13%) died during a mean follow‐up of 22.5 ± 5.1 months. Kaplan‐Meier curves for cumulative survival showed that those patients with anorexia presented higher mortality (Log‐rank test P = 0.03).ConclusionsInflammation, use of loop diuretics, and cachexia are associated with an increased likelihood of anorexia in patients with HF, and patients with anorexia showed impaired functional capacity and poor outcomes.

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An acetate anion bearing an imidazolium cation as its charge tag was reacted with M(OAc)(2) complexes (where M = Ni, Cu, and Pd; in situ reaction) to form members of a new class of charge-tagged metal complexes. The formation of these unprecedented precatalysts with potential for cross-coupling reactions was confirmed by electrospray ionization (and tandem) mass spectrometry. The catalytic performance of the palladium complex was tested in Heck and Suzuki cross-coupling reactions, often with superior activity and yields as compared with Pd(OAc)(2).

Membrane integrity is essential in maintaining sperm viability, signaling, and motility, which are essential for fertilization. Sperm are highly susceptible to oxidative stress, as they are rich in sensitive polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA), and are unable to synthesize and repair many essential membrane constituents. Because of this, sperm cellular membranes are important targets of this process. Membrane Lipid Replacement (MLR) with glycerophospholipid mixtures (GPL) has been shown to ameliorate oxidative stress in cells, restore their cellular membranes, and prevent loss of function. Therefore, we tested the effects of MLR on sperm by tracking and monitoring GPL incorporation into their membrane systems and studying their effects on sperm motility and viability under different experimental conditions. Incubation of sperm with mixtures of exogenous, unoxidized GPL results in their incorporation into sperm membranes, as shown by the use of fluorescent dyes attached to GPL. The percent overall (total) sperm motility was increased from 52±2.5% to 68±1.34% after adding GPL to the incubation media, and overall sperm motility was recovered from 7±2% after H2O2 treatment to 58±2.5%)(n = 8, p<0.01) by the incorporation of GPL into sperm membranes. When sperm were exposed to H2O2, the mitochondrial inner membrane potential (MIMP), monitored using the MIMP tracker dye JC-1 in flow cytometry, diminished, whereas the addition of GPL prevented the decrease in MIMP. Confocal microscopy with Rhodamine-123 and JC-1 confirmed the mitochondrial localization of the dyes. We conclude that incubation of human sperm with glycerolphospholipids into the membranes of sperm improves sperm viability, motility, and resistance to oxidizing agents like H2O2. This suggests that human sperm might be useful to test innovative new treatments like MLR, since such treatments could improve fertility when it is adversely affected by increased oxidative stress.