The divergent outcomes of these different studies regarding PGC-1α expression in heart failure might be, in part, due to assessment of PGC-1α expression at different time points of the disease progression (i.e., early vs. advanced stages, compensated vs. decompensated phases), when PGC-1α expression fluctuates with respect to time, reflecting a combination of adaptive and maladaptive responses to the increased workload. Here, PPARGC1A is linked to heart failure.