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Updated: Feb 20, 2026
Echocardiographic Measurement of Right Ventricular Diastolic Parameters in Mouse
Published on: April 27, 2019
Echocardiographic evaluation of diastolic function in mouse models of heart disease
Moritz Schnelle1, Norman Catibog2, Min Zhang2
1King's College London British Heart Foundation Centre of Excellence, Cardiovascular Division, London, United Kingdom; Department of Cardiology and Pneumology, University Medical Center Goettingen, Goettingen, Germany.
Insights
Echocardiography effectively assesses diastolic function in mouse heart disease models. Combined measurements of left atrial area, reverse longitudinal strain rate, and isovolumic relaxation time distinguish various pathophysiologies.
Area of Science:
- Cardiology
- Cardiovascular Research
- Animal Models
Background:
- Mouse models are crucial for studying heart disease.
- Echocardiography typically focuses on systolic function, with less emphasis on diastolic function.
- The utility of human echocardiographic diastolic parameters in mouse models needs further evaluation.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate echocardiographic parameters of diastolic function in diverse mouse models of heart disease.
- To assess the applicability of commonly used human diastolic parameters in mice.
- To identify reliable echocardiographic markers for assessing diastolic dysfunction in mice.
Main Methods:
- High-resolution echocardiography was employed.
- Evaluated diastolic function parameters in mouse models of pressure overload, volume overload, HFpEF, and acute sarcoplasmic reticulum dysfunction.
- Assessed parameters including left atrial area, mitral E/A, isovolumic relaxation time (IVRT), Doppler E/E', and peak longitudinal strain rate during early filling (reverse longitudinal strain rate).
Main Results:
- Left atrial area increased in chronic overload models.
- Isovolumic relaxation time (IVRT) and Doppler E/E' increased, while reverse longitudinal strain rate decreased in aortic constriction, correlating with hypertrophy.
- Different patterns of diastolic dysfunction were observed across pressure overload, volume overload, and HFpEF models.
- Acute thapsigargin induced significant IVRT prolongation and decreased reverse longitudinal strain rate.
Conclusions:
- Combined assessment of left atrial area, reverse longitudinal strain rate, and/or IVRT provides comprehensive evaluation of diastolic function in diseased mouse hearts.
- These echocardiographic parameters can effectively differentiate between various pathophysiological mechanisms of diastolic dysfunction in mice.
Background:
Mouse models of heart disease are extensively employed. The echocardiographic characterization of contractile function is usually focused on systolic function with fewer studies assessing diastolic function. Furthermore, the applicability of diverse echocardiographic parameters of diastolic function that are commonly used in humans has not been extensively evaluated in different pathophysiological models in mice.
Methods And Results:
We used high resolution echocardiography to evaluate parameters of diastolic function in mouse models of chronic pressure overload (aortic constriction), volume overload (aorto-caval shunt), heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF; DOCA-salt hypertension), and acute sarcoplasmic reticulum dysfunction induced by thapsigargin - all known to exhibit diastolic dysfunction. Left atrial area increased in all three chronic models while mitral E/A was difficult to quantify at high heart rates. Isovolumic relaxation time (IVRT) and Doppler E/E' increased significantly and the peak longitudinal strain rate during early filling (peak reverse longitudinal strain rate) decreased significantly after aortic constriction, with the changes being proportional to the magnitude of hypertrophy. In the HFpEF model, reverse longitudinal strain rate decreased significantly but changes in IVRT and E/E' were non-significant, consistent with less severe dysfunction. With volume overload, there was a significant increase in reverse longitudinal strain rate and decrease in IVRT, indicating a restrictive physiology. Acute thapsigargin treatment caused significant prolongation of IVRT and decrease in reverse longitudinal strain rate.
Conclusion:
These results indicate that the combined measurement of left atrial area plus reverse longitudinal strain rate and/or IVRT provide an excellent overall assessment of diastolic function in the diseased mouse heart, allowing distinction between different types of pathophysiology.
