Hydrogen inhalation with metformin cardioprotective against diabetic cardiomyopathy

China: A new study found that inhaling hydrogen reduces pyroptosis and fibrosis in diabetic cardiomyopathy (DCM) and that hydrogen may be paired with metformin to have a more robust cardioprotective impact in DCM. The findings of this study were published in the journal Free Radical Biology and Medicine.

Hydrogen is a unique medicinal gas having anti-inflammatory, anti-oxidative, anti-allergic, anti-apoptotic, and energy metabolism-boosting effects. Hydrogen therapy has been shown to be useful in treating myocardial ischemia, infarction, and ischemia-reperfusion damage. DCM is a significant cardiovascular consequence of long-term chronic diabetes that is associated with an elevated risk of arrhythmia morbidity and heart failure. The role of hydrogen in the pathophysiology of DCM is yet unknown. Metformin is a well-known pharmacological medication for the treatment of diabetes; nevertheless, the drug's negative effects limit its use in large doses.

Therefore this study was conducted by Rentong Zou and team to highlight the effects of Hydrogen and metformin therapy against DCM. In this context, researchers looked at the influence of hydrogen on DCM as well as the processes that underpin it. They also looked at the effectiveness of co-administration of metformin and hydrogen.

The key findings of this study are as follow:

1. Hydrogen was discovered to alleviate heart dysfunction and aberrant morphological structure in streptozotocin-induced diabetic mice in this study.

2. As a method, hydrogen was shown to reduce pyroptosis by inhibiting the AMPK/mTOR/NLRP3 signaling pathway and alleviating fibrosis by inhibiting the TGF-1/Smad signaling pathway.

3. Furthermore, as compared to a single application of metformin, the data revealed that co-administration of hydrogen and metformin had powerful protective benefits, as demonstrated by enhanced survival rates, lower fasting blood glucose, and lower cell damage.

In conclusion, the outcomes of this study point to the efficacy of Hydrogen coupled with metformin in demonstrating significant cardioprotective effects in DCM, and future therapies should be considered including these for the treatment.

Reference: 

Zou, R., Nie, C., Pan, S., Wang, B., Hong, X., Xi, S., Bai, J., Yu, M., Liu, J., & Yang, W. (2022). Co-administration of hydrogen and metformin exerts cardioprotective effects by inhibiting pyroptosis and fibrosis in diabetic cardiomyopathy. Free radical biology & medicine, S0891-5849(22)00105-8. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.freeradbiomed.2022.03.010

Keywords: pyroptosis, cardiomyopathy, hydrogen, metformin, diabetes, anti-inflammatory, anti-oxidative, anti-allergic, free radical, apoptosis, diabetic cardiomyopathy, Rentong Zou Free Radical Biology & Medicine.