Neonatal ketone body elevation regulates postnatal heart development by promoting cardiomyocyte mitochondrial maturation and metabolic reprogramming

Neonatal heart undergoes metabolic conversion and cell cycle arrest preparing for the increased workload during adulthood. Herein, we report that neonatal ketone body elevation is a critical regulatory factor for postnatal heart development. Through multiomics screening, we found that the expression of 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl-CoA synthase 2 (HMGCS2), the rate-limiting enzyme of ketogenesis, was transiently induced by colostrum in the neonatal heart. Hmgcs2 knockout caused mitochondrial maturation defects. Meanwhile, postnatal heart development was compromised and cardiomyocytes reacquired proliferation capacity in Hmgcs2 knockout mice. Consequently, over 40% of newborn Hmgcs2 knockout mice died before weaning. The heart function of surviving Hmgcs2 knockout mice was also impaired, which could be rescued by ketone body supplementation during the suckling stage. Mechanistically, ketone body deficiency inhibited β-hydroxybutyrylation but enhanced acetylation of mitochondrial proteins, which might be responsible for the inhibition of the enzyme activity in mitochondria. These observations suggest that ketone body is critical for postnatal heart development through regulating mitochondrial maturation and metabolic reprogramming.