Diabetic cardiomyopathy - Zalophus californianus (California sea lion)

Diabetic cardiomyopathy has been defined as left ventricular dysfunction that occurs among patients with diabetes mellitus independent of a recognized cause such as coronary artery disease or hypertension. The pathogenesis of diabetic cardiomyopathy broadly involves hyperglycemia, increased circulating fatty acids, and insulin resistance contributing to reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation, mitochondrial dysfunction, impaired calcium metabolism, Renin-Angiotensin System (RAS) activation, and altered substrate metabolism. These effects result in cardiac fibrosis, hypertrophy, cardiomyocyte death, contractile dysfunction, endothelial cell damage and eventually heart failure. In the process of cardiac fibrosis, cardiac fibroblasts are the final effector cell.