The heart needs a steady supply of energy to keep beating. When it’s under sustained pressure, its ability to turn fuel into energy can falter. In a 2024 study in Circulation, Weiyi Xu and colleagues asked whether two experimental compounds could help the heart maintain that energy supply. Read the original study.

The team tested SLU-PP-332 and SLU-PP-915 in mice whose hearts had to pump against increased pressure. With either compound, the heart’s main pumping chamber expelled a greater fraction of its blood with each beat. Treated mice also developed less scarring in the heart muscle and were more likely to survive during the study. The heart muscle still thickened under pressure, even as its pumping function improved. See the study results.

The researchers traced much of the metabolic response to ERRγ, a receptor that helps control genes involved in energy production. Activating these pathways helped mitochondria use fatty acids as fuel. That raises a question for future research: could supporting the heart’s energy supply help it keep pumping under strain? The findings come from a mouse model, and whether the same approach could safely benefit people remains open. Read the study abstract.