On this episode of JHLT: The Podcast, the Digital Media Editors invite first author Gaurav Sharma, PhD, MBA, from the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas. Dr. Sharma discusses his paper, “Metabolic and transcriptomic insights into temperature controlled hypothermic preservation of human donor hearts.”

The discussion explores:

• How donor hearts not offered or declined for transplantation responded in hypothermic preservation versus conventional static cold storage
• Potentially beneficial genetic signatures yielded by TCHP versus cold storage
• The surprising response of energy stores in the hearts to the different storage environments
• How multi-omic approaches could be applied to other organs

For the latest studies from JHLT, visit www.jhltonline.org/current, or, if you’re an ISHLT member, access your Journal membership at www.ishlt.org/jhlt.

Don’t already get the Journal and want to read along? Join the International Society of Heart and Lung Transplantation at www.ishlt.org for a free subscription, or subscribe today at www.jhltonline.org.

On this episode of JHLT: The Podcast, the Digital Media Editors invite first author Joan Guzmán-Bofarull, and senior author, Marta Farrero, both of the Hospital Clinic de Barcelona in Spain. They join to discuss their paper, “Regional differences in primary graft dysfunction: A report from the international consortium on PGD.”

The discussion explores:

• The international consortium on PGD, the composition of the study, and the practices of the included countries in the United States, Canada, and Europe
• Hypotheses on why the study shows better 30-day and 1-year outcomes in the United States
• Considerations transplant centers can take regarding recipient management and donor heart selection

For the latest studies from JHLT, visit www.jhltonline.org/current, or, if you’re an ISHLT member, access your Journal membership at www.ishlt.org/jhlt.

Don’t already get the Journal and want to read along? Join the International Society of Heart and Lung Transplantation at www.ishlt.org for a free subscription, or subscribe today at www.jhltonline.org.

On this episode of JHLT: The Podcast, the Digital Media Editors invite first author Nikil Prasad, MD, a cardiology fellow in the Columbia University Medical Center in New York, to discuss the paper, “Can the grading of mild cardiac allograft vasculopathy be further refined? An angiographic and physiologic assessment of heart transplant recipients with ISHLT CAV 1.”

The discussion explores:

• The study's subdivisions of CAV grade 1 into CAV 1a and CAV 1b, based on the degree of coronary stenosis
• Differing clinical information provided by different methods of CAV screening: reduced myocardial blood flow reserve vs angiographic grading
• Limitations in implementing PET-based CAV assessments at various centers, and how transplant programs can use combined testing data

For the latest studies from JHLT, visit www.jhltonline.org/current, or, if you’re an ISHLT member, access your Journal membership at www.ishlt.org/jhlt.

Don’t already get the Journal and want to read along? Join the International Society of Heart and Lung Transplantation at www.ishlt.org for a free subscription, or subscribe today at www.jhltonline.org.

On this special episode of JHLT: The Podcast, the Digital Media Editors take a look back at the exciting science that was on display at ISHLT2025, the ISHLT 45th Annual Meeting & Scientific Sessions.

Topics include:

• Telomere biology disorders and lung transplantation
• The meeting's special focus on cardiogenic shock
• The apixiVAD trial exploring low dose apixaban in HeartMate 3 LVADs
• Myocardial recovery on durable LVADs

For the latest studies from JHLT, visit jhltonline.org/current, or, if you’re an ISHLT member, access your Journal membership at ishlt.org/jhlt. Full-text abstracts of the meeting can also be found at the JHLT website.

Don’t already get the Journal and want to read along? Join the International Society of Heart and Lung Transplantation at www.ishlt.org for a free subscription, or subscribe today at www.jhltonline.org.

On this episode of JHLT: The Podcast, the Digital Media Editors invite first author Peter Cho and senior author Abbas Ardehali, MD, to discuss the paper, “Severe primary graft dysfunction in heart transplant recipients using donor hearts after circulatory death: a United States Experience.”

Peter is a third year medical student at Drexel University, and Dr. Ardehali is professor of surgery and medicine and the Director of the Heart, Lung, and Heart-Lung Transplant programs at UCLA.

The episode explores:

• The study's findings regarding an increased incidence of severe PGD at 24 hours post-transplant in DCD over DBD recipients
• What risks weren't changed in DCD recipients—suggesting that DCD PGD is likely to be transient, and may have a different phenotype
• How NRP may impact the outcomes
• Mitigating the risk of PGD

For the latest studies from JHLT, visit www.jhltonline.org/current, or, if you’re an ISHLT member, access your Journal membership at www.ishlt.org/jhlt.

Tune in again later this month for the Digital Media Editors’ findings and observations from the ISHLT2025 Annual Meeting in Boston.

Don’t already get the Journal and want to read along? Join the International Society of Heart and Lung Transplantation at www.ishlt.org for a free subscription, or subscribe today at www.jhltonline.org.

Returning for a second study this month, the JHLT Digital Media Editors invite first author Charlotte Van Edom to discuss the paper, “Apixaban plasma levels in patients with HeartMate 3 support.”

As a cardiologist in training and a PhD candidate at the University Hospitals Leuven in Belgium, Van Edom’s work focuses on hemocompatibility and mechanical circulatory support, covering both short-term and long-term support.

The episode explores:

• The evolution of the use and understanding of direct oral anticoagulants (DOACs) during LVAD support, including the increased focus on Factor Xa inhibitors
• Encouraging findings from the study and what clinical practices might need to change if introducing apixaban
• Additional studies exploring DOACs in LVAD patients

For the latest studies from JHLT, visit www.jhltonline.org/current, or, if you’re an ISHLT member, access your Journal membership at www.ishlt.org/jhlt.

Treat or research pulmonary vascular diseases? Check out the first April episode for a study on sotatercept in PAH patients.

Don’t already get the Journal and want to read along? Join the International Society of Heart and Lung Transplantation at www.ishlt.org for a free subscription, or subscribe today at www.jhltonline.org.

On this episode of JHLT: The Podcast, the Digital Media Editors invite author Ioana Preston, MD, to discuss the paper, “Efficacy and safety of sotatercept across ranges of cardiac index in patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension: A pooled analysis of PULSAR and STELLAR.”

Dr. Preston is the director of the pulmonary hypertension center at Lahey Hospital and Medical Center in Burlington, Massachusetts, and has over 20 years of experience in caring for patients with PH, as well as multiple clinical trials in PH.

The episode explores:

• What makes sotatercept unique as the first “biologic” in the treatment of PAH
• Hypotheses about the mechanism of action in sotatercept
• Sotatercept’s interaction with mPAP and what it indicates about the drug’s action on the pulmonary vasculature

For the latest studies from JHLT, visit www.jhltonline.org/current, or, if you’re an ISHLT member, access your Journal membership at www.ishlt.org/jhlt.

Those involved in the heart failure and mechanical circulatory support should tune in again later this month for a study on apixaban plasma levels in patients with HeartMate 3 support.

Don’t already get the Journal and want to read along? Join the International Society of Heart and Lung Transplantation at www.ishlt.org for a free subscription, or subscribe today at www.jhltonline.org.

Returning for a second study this month, the JHLT Digital Media Editors conduct an internal discussion on the paper, “Safety and efficacy of riociguat in patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension and cardiometabolic comorbidities: Data from interventional clinical trials.”

The episode explores:

• The aging PAH population and the new comorbidities that must be considered in research
• How the study augments and expands on recent standards, like the 2022 ESC/ERS guidelines for pulmonary hypertension
• Limitations on the study and opportunities for future research

For the latest studies from JHLT, visit www.jhltonline.org/current, or, if you’re an ISHLT member, access your Journal membership at www.ishlt.org/jhlt.

Those on lung transplant teams should check the previous episode for a study on how rewarming ischemia time affects lung transplant outcomes.

Don’t already get the Journal and want to read along? Join the International Society of Heart and Lung Transplantation at www.ishlt.org for a free subscription, or subscribe today at www.jhltonline.org.

On this episode of JHLT: The Podcast, the Digital Media Editors invite lead author Jan Van Slambrouck, MD, to discuss the paper, “The effect of rewarming ischemia on tissue transcriptome and metabolome signatures: A clinical observational study in lung transplantation.”

Dr. Van Slambrouck is a general surgeon who’s just finished his PhD training at the KU Leuven lab of respiratory disease and thoracic surgery in Belgium.

The episode explores: 

• How rewarming ischemia time (RIT) affects donor lungs, especially on the molecular level
• The pace of rewarming and how prior literature prepared the team to track and evaluate it
• Clinical strategies to reduce RIT and directly address molecular changes

For the latest studies from JHLT, visit www.jhltonline.org/current, or, if you’re an ISHLT member, access your Journal membership at www.ishlt.org/jhlt.

Those involved in the pulmonary vascular disease space should tune in again later this month for a study on the safety and efficacy of riociguat in patients with PAH.

Don’t already get the Journal and want to read along? Join the International Society of Heart and Lung Transplantation at www.ishlt.org for a free subscription, or subscribe today at www.jhltonline.org.

Returning for a second study this month, the JHLT Digital Media Editors invite lead author Oliver J.F. Weiner, to discuss the paper, “Sympathetic reinnervation in cardiac transplant recipients: Prevalence, time course, and association with long-term survival.”

Dr. Weiner is currently an out of training registrar at Monash Health in Melbourne, Australia, but will soon return to his home of the UK to begin internal medicine training with the intention becoming a cardiologist. He is especially interested in advanced heart failure and electrophysiology.

The episode explores:

• The uncertainty around clinical influences on reinnervation
• The importance of this single-center study in expanding the literature
• Potential future treatment options

For the latest studies from JHLT, visit www.jhltonline.org/current, or, if you’re an ISHLT member, access your Journal membership at www.ishlt.org/jhlt.

Those on lung transplant teams should check the previous episode for a study on recent trends and post-transplant outcomes from EVLP.

Don’t already get the Journal and want to read along? Join the International Society of Heart and Lung Transplantation at www.ishlt.org for a free subscription, or subscribe today at www.jhltonline.org.