HEART FAILURE (HF) AFFECTS APPROXIMATELY 5.1 MILLION PEOPLE IN THE UNITED STATES, AND DIAGNOSES HAVE REMAINED CONSISTENT WITH MORE THAN 650,000 NEW CASES EVERY YEAR. THE FIVE-YEAR SURVIVAL RATE AFTER DIAGNOSIS IS APPROXIMATELY 50%. WHILE HF PRIMARILY AFFECTS THE ELDERLY, CONSIDERING THE GROWING AGE OF THE POPULATION, 1 IN 33 INDIVIDUALS IN THE UNITED STATES (US) WILL HAVE HF BY THE YEAR 2030, LEADING TO A NEAR DOUBLING IN HEALTHCARE COSTS. HF IS CHARACTERIZED BY REDUCED EJECTION FRACTION AND INCREASED LEFT VENTRICULAR WALL THICKENING DUE TO STRUCTURAL AND FUNCTIONAL DEFECTS OF THE HEART. THIS CAN BE INITIATED BY ISCHEMIA OR INCREASED VENTRICULAR PRESSURE DUE TO HYPERTENSION. THIS MODIFIED CARDIAC LOAD INCREASES STRESS OF THE VENTRICULAR WALL, LEADING TO STRUCTURAL REMODELING DUE TO CARDIOMYOCYTE HYPERTROPHY AND APOPTOSIS. THE PRIMARY GOAL OF PHARMACOLOGICAL INTERVENTIONS TO TREAT HF IS TO IMPROVE CARDIAC OUTPUT BY REDUCING STRESS ON THE HEART WALLS AS WELL AS MODIFYING CONTRACTILE SIGNALING. HOWEVER, CONSIDERING THE 50% 5-YEAR MORTALITY RATE FOLLOWING DIAGNOSIS, ALTERNATIVE THERAPIES ARE URGENTLY NEEDED.RECOMMENDATIONS FROM THE AMERICAN HEART ASSOCIATION IN THE MANAGEMENT OF HEART FAILURE WITH LIFESTYLE INCLUDE WEIGHT LOSS, EXERCISE AND DIETARY MODIFICATIONS, E.G. INCREASING THE CONSUMPTION OF FRUIT AND VEGETABLES. HOWEVER, SCANT STUDIES EXIST WHICH EXAMINE THE USE OF DIETARY TREATMENTS IN HEART FAILURE. RASPBERRIES ARE MAJOR FRUIT CROPS THAT ARE NATIVE TO NORTH AMERICA AND ARE WIDELY CONSUMED IN THE US. THIS BERRY HAS STRONG ANTI-INFLAMMATORY AND ANTIOXIDANT PROPERTIES, PARTICULARLY DUE TO THE RICH POLYPHENOL CONTENT OF THIS BERRY. SCIENTIFIC EVIDENCE SUGGESTS THAT CONSUMPTION OF POLYPHENOLS, WHICH ARE FOUND IN HIGH CONCENTRATIONS IN RASPBERRIES, COULD BE A VIABLE TREATMENT IN HEART FAILURE, ALTHOUGH IT HAS YET TO BE DEMONSTRATED.THEREFORE, LONG TERM-GOAL OF THESE STUDIES IS TO IDENTIFY AND DEVELOP SAFE AND EFFECTIVE ALTERNATIVE OR COMPLEMENTARY NUTRITIONAL STRATEGIES THAT CAN IMPROVE CARDIAC HEALTH. THE OVERALL GOAL OF OUR PROJECT IS TO USE A PRECLINICAL MOUSE MODEL TO INVESTIGATE THE EFFICACY OF RASPBERRY CONSUMPTION IN ATTENUATING ISCHEMIA-INDUCED HEART FAILURE. WE ALSO AIM TO DETERMINE WHETHER THE PROTECTIVE EFFECTS OF RASPBERRY ARE MEDIATED BY DECREASES IN OXIDATIVE STRESS AND INFLAMMATION. DATA GENERATED BY THESE STUDIES WILL BE MADE AVAILABLE TO THE PUBLIC AND SCIENTIFIC COMMUNITIES IN PEER-REVIEWED SCIENTIFIC JOURNALS, PRESENTATIONS AT SCIENTIFIC MEETINGS, AND PRESS-RELEASES. BY CONDUCTING THESE STUDIES, WE WILL PROVIDE EVIDENCE TO INFORM THE PUBLIC OF DIETARY STRATEGIES THAT THEY CAN EMPLOY TO REDUCE THEIR RISK OF HEART FAILURE. FURTHER, IDENTIFYING THE MECHANISMS MEDIATING THE PROTECTIVE EFFECTS OF RASPBERRIES PROVIDES POTENTIAL NEW THERAPEUTIC TARGETS FOR THE TREATMENT OF HEART FAILURE. THIS IS OF SIGNIFICANCE AS IT CAN HAVE A GREAT IMPACT ON THE QUALITY OF LIFE, PRODUCTIVITY, AND ECONOMIC BURDEN FOR THE AFFECTED POPULATIONS. LASTLY,THIS CAN LEAD TO ADDITIONAL DEMAND FOR RASPBERRY CONSUMPTION DUE TO THEIR HEALTH BENEFITS RESULTING IN AN AGRICULTURAL EXPANSION AND PRODUCTION OF THIS BERRY.