title: GDF 15--A Novel Biomarker in the Offing for Heart Failure.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Several diagnostic and prognostic biomarkers are being explored in heart failure. GDF-15 belongs to the transforming growth factor β (TGF-β) cytokine family that is highly up regulated in inflammatory conditions. We undertook this systematic review to summarize the current evidence on the utility of GDF-15 as a biomarker in heart failure.
  
  
  METHODS
  Multiple electronic databases for studies that reported the association between GDF- 15 and heart failure were searched using different electronic databases such as MEDLINE, Science Direct, Springer Link, Scopus, Cochrane Reviews, and Google Scholar using pre-defined inclusion- exclusion criteria.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Twenty one original studies were identified that included data from 20,920 study participants. GDF 15 was found to be a strong prognosticator of all-cause mortality in heart failure patients. Several studies found the benefit of using GDF-15 as a component of a multi-biomarker strategy in prognosticating patients with heart failure.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  More studies are warranted to elucidate the molecular pathways involving GDF-15 and to see how knowledge about GDF-15 can be used to make therapeutic decisions in the clinic.
authors.affiliation: SRM Medical College Hospital & Research Centre-Cardiology, Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India. melvin.g@ktr.srmuniv.ac.in.
authors.forename: Melvin
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: George
authors.forename: Amrita
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Jena
authors.forename: Varsha
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Srivatsan
authors.forename: Rajaram
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Muthukumar
authors.forename: V E
authors.initials: VE
authors.lastname: Dhandapani
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D015415:Biomarkers / Q000097:blood; D055436:Growth Differentiation Factor 15 / Q000097:blood*; D006333:Heart Failure / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000628:therapy; D006801:Humans; D011379:Prognosis
chemical_list: D015415:Biomarkers; C526140:GDF15 protein, human; D055436:Growth Differentiation Factor 15