Journal of cardiac failure
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The overall goal of this study was to develop an assay procedure for measuring the relative abundance of tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinase (TIMP)-4 in plasma, and then use this approach to determine dynamic changes of TIMP-4 levels in hypertrophic obstructive cardiomyopathic (HOCM) patients after an acute myocardial infarction (MI). Matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) contribute to tissue remodeling and are regulated by the endogenous TIMPs. TIMP-4 is observed to be expressed in higher abundance in the myocardium when compared with other types of tissues. Recent clinical studies have measured changes in TIMP-4 levels; however, these studies have been limited to measuring this protein from myocardial tissue samples. To date, no studies have monitored TIMP-4 levels in plasma samples. ⋯ The unique results demonstrated that an induction of a controlled MI, specifically through alcohol ablation, caused a reduction in plasma TIMP-4 levels in HOCM patients after alcohol-induced MI that would facilitate myocardial remodeling in the early post-MI setting.