Effects of empagliflozin on cardio-renal interaction in heart failure with reduced ejection fraction: results from in-vivo experiments and the CINNAMON-study

Abstract Background Heart failure is often accompanied by renal dysfunction, which indicates a pathophysiological connection between the heart and kidneys. Empagliflozin, a SGLT2 inhibitor, showed beneficial effects on both cardiovascular and renal endpoints. Mechanistically, however, it is unclear whether the empagliflozin-dependent renal protection is mediated via the inhibition of renal SGLT2 or rather indirectly via improved cardiac function. Interestingly, in the EMPEROR trials, there was a significant interaction of empagliflozin-dependent kidney protection with systolic contractile dysfunction. We hypothesized that Empagliflozin treatment ameliorates heart failure in response to chronic pressure overload in mice leading to improved renal function. We correlated these findings with data from our prospective, single-armed trial. Methods Transverse aortic constriction (TAC) or sham surgery was performed in C57BL/6J (wildtype, WT) and SGLT2 deficient mice (SGLT2-/-). Animals received either Empagliflozin (10 mg/kg bodyweight) or vehicle by daily oral gavage. Cardiac function was evaluated by echocardiography and kidney function by transdermal FITC-Sinistrin measurement (GFR), urinary albumin/creatinine ratio (UACR) and Siriusred fibrosis staining. Results After 10 weeks, echocardiography confirmed TAC induced pressure-overload, leading to reduced left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) and diastolic dysfunction. Empagliflozin attenuated changes in LVEF (Fig. A) and improved diastolic dysfunction (data not shown). Interestingly, at 10 weeks, TAC reduced GFR, increased UACR and tended to increase renal fibrosis, which was attenuated by empagliflozin (Fig. B, C and D). To test if direct inhibition of SGLT2 in the heart and kidney is mechanistically involved, TAC surgery was repeated in SGLT2-deficient mice (SGLT2-/-). In fact, exposure to TAC resulted in comparable reduction of LVEF in SGLT2-/- mice and Empagliflozin prevented this deterioration similar to WT mice (Fig. E vs. A). Surprisingly, Empagliflozin also prevented GFR deterioration 10 weeks after TAC in mice lacking SGLT2 (SGLT2-/-) with comparable magnitude as in WT mice (Fig. F), suggesting that the reno-protective effect of Empagliflozin was independent from renal SGLT2 inhibition. The effect of empagliflozin on the heart and kidney was also investigated in patients with HF (prospective, single-arm CINNAMON-study, DRKS00031101). After 180 days of Empagliflozin treatment (10 mg), there was a significant improvement in LVEF, NT-proBNP levels and KCCQ-12 Scores (Fig. G-I) and the effects on UACR and GFR are subject of investigation. Conclusion This is the first study investigating the role of SGLT2 in Empagliflozin-dependent kidney protection of mice that develop heart failure after TAC. Importantly, empagliflozin treatment prevented deterioration of LVEF and GFR independent of the presence of SGLT2 in mice and improved cardiac markers and quality of life in patients.