Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
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Query: EC:3.4.15.1 (ACE)
 18,300 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

Cocaine abuse can cause cardiovascular damage leading to hypertension, myocardial ischaemia and infarction. This might be partly due to the effects of cocaine on the microcirculation about which little is known, although its effects on the macrovessels are well documented. Accordingly, we used in vivo videomicroscopy to study the vasoconstrictive effect of cocaine on arterioles of different diameter. They were classified into three orders (A2, A3, A4) according to their position in the microvascular network and their diameter. Since calcium antagonists have been reported to exert a protective effect against the cardiovascular disorders induced by cocaine, we tested the hypothesis that this protective action occurs in the microcirculation. We found that intra-arterial administration of the calcium antagonist Nitrendipine greatly inhibited the vasoconstriction induced by cocaine in all three arteriole orders. The degree of inhibition ranged from 44 to 56%. Combined administration of benzodiazepine and an angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitor has also been reported to protect rats against cocaine-induced hypertension and to increase survival rates after a toxic dose of cocaine. Since the mechanisms of this protection are not yet clear, we also studied the effect of the angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitor Enalaprilat on cocaine-induced vasoconstriction. Intra-arterial administration of Enalaprilat inhibited this vasoconstriction slightly but significantly in arteriole orders 2 and 3 by 27 and 24% respectively, but not in order 4. We concluded that Nitrendipine is a powerful inhibitor of cocaine-induced vasoconstriction in the microcirculation. The small but significant inhibition found with Enalaprilat for the larger arterioles suggests that the local angiotensin II level may affect the response to cocaine. However, since the Enalaprilat-induced inhibition was very limited, we conclude that mechanisms other than those occurring in the peripheral microcirculation account for the protection afforded by Enalaprilat against the harmful effects of cocaine.
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PMID:Microvascular effects of cocaine; interaction with nitrendipine and enalaprilat. 164 95

Cocaine abuse and HIV disease each have potentially adverse effects upon the heart and cardiovascular system which may be exacerbated when these risk factors are combined. The development of a safe and effective agent to treat both cocaine addiction and its cardiovascular sequelae, that is well-tolerated by HIV patients, would thus be of considerable clinical utility. In this article we discuss the rationale for the investigation of angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors, commonly used to treat hypertension, for treatment in cocaine-abusing populations, based on their potential to reduce cocaine use by modulating levels of dopamine and corticotropin releasing factor in the brain, and on their ability to reverse cardiovascular and platelet abnormalities. We present preliminary findings from echocardiographic and platelet activation studies in 16 HIV-positive, cocaine abusing patients, as well as tolerability and efficacy studies of the ACE-inhibitor, fosinopril, for the treatment of cocaine abuse in both HIV-positive (n=6) and HIV-negative (n=5) methadone-maintained cocaine abusers. Findings suggest that HIV-positive cocaine-abusing patients possess abnormalities of diastolic heart function and platelet activation that are potentially reversible with ACE-inhibitor therapy. Findings also suggest that fosinopril is well-tolerated regardless of HIV serostatus, does not appear to cause hypotension, and may possess effectiveness for reducing cocaine use. We conclude that ACE-inhibitor therapy may offer a new pharmacologic approach to the treatment of cocaine abuse and its complications, and that controlled research of this class of agents may be promising.
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PMID:Cocaine, HIV, and their cardiovascular effects: is there a role for ACE-inhibitor therapy? 1106 82

A 19 year old patient presented with the typical constellation of sarcoidosis. In the presence of indefinable pulmonary infiltrates, hypercalcemia, raised angiotensin converting enzyme and even evidence of giant and epitheloid cell granulomas, cocaine abuse should be considered. Chronic inhalative cocaine abuse can cause foreign body associated granulomatosis of the lung and other organs. It is important to establish this differential diagnosis by confidential interview and systematic polarisation microscopy to detect foreign material in tissues: unnecessary therapies with potential side effects should be avoided and drug weaning with rehabilitation of the patient should be initiated. However the potential for rapid progressive respiratory failure should not be underestimated.
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PMID:[Pulmonary infiltrates in a 19 year old patient with dysuria and hypercalcemia]. 1523 87

The leading cause of acute myocardial infarction (AMI) in patients with coronary heart disease is plaque rupture. Between 6% and 12% of AMI patients have angiographically normal coronary arteries. However, new procedures have demonstrated the limits of coronarography and challenged the existence of this situation. Angiograms may fail to detect minimal lesions whereas, in many cases, intravascular sonography reveals small atherosclerotic plaques. With the development of intravascular sonography and multislice computed tomography, the prevalence of myocardial infarction with normal coronary arteries has fallen to about 1%. Myocardial infarction with normal coronary arteries may be due to coronary vasospasm, hypercoagulable states, intense sympathetic stimulation, non atherosclerotic coronary disease, alcohol or cocaine abuse, and systemic diseases. In a series of 1205 AMI patients, we found no significant coronary disease in 45 patients, but intravascular sonography showed minimal intracoronary plaque in 21 of these cases. The 24 patients without significant lesions were young, had no risk factors for AMI without a prodrome, low peak creatine release, a small reduction in the left ventricular ejection fraction after thrombolysis or angioplasty, and good outcome at 26 months. The mechanisms of AMI in these 24 patients were coronary spasm, myocardial bridge, a prothrombotic state, contraceptive pill usage, and drug or alcohol abuse. The diferential diagnoses of these cases of AMI are acute myocarditis and stress cardiomyopathy, and apical left ventricular ballooning. Initial management is the same as for "conventional" AMI, including pain relief nitrates, antiplatelet agents, heparin, thrombolysis or angioplasty in the acute phase, and ACE inhibitors. Patients with spasm should receive calcium antagonists rather than beta-blockers. The prognosis of these patients is better than that of patients with atherosclerotic lesions. They nonetheless need close follow-up and strict secondary prevention measures, including smoking cessation and prevention of dyslipidemia and diabetes.
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PMID:[Myocardial infarction with "angiographycally normal coronary arteries" myth or reality?]. 1822 36