Chinese General Practice · Oct 30, 2026
Research Progress of mTOR Pathway in Heart Failure Caused by Myocardial Aging
By Wang Yujia, Zhang Jinying, Tang Junnan
Heart failure is the end-stage of many heart diseases with poor prognosis, and its risk increases significantly with age and myocardial cell aging. The mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) pathway plays a key role in the pathophysiology of cardiomyocyte aging. This article reviews the latest research progress of the mTOR pathway in heart failure caused by myocardial cell aging, and explores potential intervention strategies to delay cardiomyocyte aging. This article shows that the continued activation of mTORC1 during aging drives pathological cardiac changes and accelerates the progression of heart failure by regulating protein synthesis, lipid metabolism, and inhibiting autophagy. Conversely, inhibiting the overactivation of mTORC1 can slow cardiac aging and extend lifespan in elderly animals. This article provides new insights into alleviating heart failure caused by aging and could help reduce the societal burden of this disease.