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Query: UMLS:C0004153 (atherosclerosis)
 77,401 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

In the present study, the concentration of NG,NG-dimethylarginine (DMA), an endogenous inhibitor of nitric oxide synthesis, was measured with high-performance liquid chromatography, and the effect of hypercholesterolemia on DMA level was investigated in the high fat, high cholesterol fed rabbit. After 6 weeks on a high fat, high cholesterol diet, serum total cholesterol, triglycerides, and lipid peroxides were increased, and atherosclerosis was shown by means of morphological examination. In these rabbits with atherosclerosis, serum level of DMA was significantly raised, while serum creatine level remained normal. This study suggests that chronic hypercholesteremia may stimulate DMA production through elevation of lipid peroxides. The present results implicate endogenous DMA as a contributor to the development of atherosclerosis.
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PMID:Increase of an endogenous inhibitor of nitric oxide synthesis in serum of high cholesterol fed rabbits. 812 Dec 38

The vascular endothelial cell is a multipotent cell which has several functions: transport barrier, phagocytosis, coagulation/anticoagulation, fibrinolysis, autocrine/paracrine and metabolic functions. The release of vasoactive agents, such as the vasodilators EDRF (NO) and EDHF, and vasoconstrictors, such as endothelin (ET), represents an important local mechanism altering the balance of vasodilation/ vasoconstriction of the vascular smooth muscle cell. Inhibition of the synthesis of NO by exogenous (e.g. L-NAME) or endogenous (e.g. ADMA) L-arginine analogues may cause transient or sustained hypertension. A similar effect may be achieved by continuous administration of the potent vasoconstrictor ET. Endothelial dysfunction, associated with a deficient NO production and release as well an enhanced ET generation, may be present in some forms of vascular disease, such as hypertension, atherosclerosis, diabetes mellitus or sleep apnea. Whether such alterations may be a cause of hypertension and involved in the maintenance of high blood pressure or whether they represent a consequence of the hypertensive disease remains to be concluded. Furthermore, while there is emerging evidence that endothelial dysfunction in cardiovascular disease may be reversed by therapy, it remains to be determined whether measures of endothelial function in man may serve as predictors for morbidity or mortality.
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PMID:Measures of endothelial function as an endpoint in hypertension? 949 29

L-arginine, the precursor of endogenous nitric oxide (NO), has been shown to enhance endothelial function and to reduce the progression of atherosclerosis in cholesterol-fed rabbits. In the present study, we investigated whether myointimal cell proliferation is enhanced in hypercholesterolaemic rabbit aorta and whether chronic treatment of the rabbits with L-arginine or with the NO synthase inhibitor L-NAME influences this proliferative response and vascular monocyte accumulation. Rabbits were fed 1% cholesterol or normal rabbit chow for 12 weeks. Subgroups of cholesterol-fed rabbits were treated with oral L-arginine (2.25%) or L-NAME (3 mg/dl) in drinking water. Myointimal cell proliferation was quantified in aortic segments by immunohistochemical detection of bromodeoxyuridine (BrdU) incorporation into nuclear DNA; vascular monocyte accumulation was assessed by immunohistochemistry using a monoclonal anti-macrophage/monocyte antibody (RAM-11). Plasma levels of L-arginine and the endogenous NO synthase inhibitor, ADMA, were quantified by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). Cholesterol feeding increased the aortic intima/media (I/M) ratio, which was not measurable in the control group, to 1.9 +/- 0.3. This was paralleled by enhanced cell proliferation (cholesterol, 2.4 +/- 0.2%; P < 0.05; control, 0.02 +/- 0.001% BrdU-positive cells per 72 h) and vascular monocyte accumulation. Double immunostaining for BrdU and alpha-actin showed that about two thirds of the proliferating cells were smooth muscle cells. ADMA levels increased from 0.8 +/- 0.1 micromol/l to 2.2 +/- 0.2 micromol/l in cholesterol-fed rabbits, but were unchanged by L-arginine or L-NAME treatment. Myointimal proliferation and intima/media ratios were correlated with ADMA plasma levels. Dietary L-arginine reduced monocyte accumulation by 85 +/- 2% (P < 0.05 vs cholesterol), myointimal cell proliferation (1.8 +/- 0.3% per 72 h; P < 0.05) and intimal thickening (I/M ratio: 0.7 +/- 0.2), whereas the inhibitor of NO synthase, L-NAME, further increased cell proliferation to 3.1 +/- 0.4% per 72 h (P < 0.05). No significant difference was observed in vascular monocyte infiltration between the cholesterol and L-NAME groups. We conclude that cell proliferation and vascular monocyte accumulation are enhanced in hypercholesterolaemic rabbit aorta. These atherogenic effects can be attenuated by dietary L-arginine. Decreased NO formation might underlie the enhanced monocyte accumulation and cell proliferation in hypercholesterolaemic rabbit aorta. The observed inhibition of cell proliferation adds to our understanding of the antiatherosclerotic effects of L-arginine in vivo.
Atherosclerosis 1998 Jan
PMID:Dietary L-arginine decreases myointimal cell proliferation and vascular monocyte accumulation in cholesterol-fed rabbits. 954 33

Endothelial dysfunction defined as the impaired ability of vascular endothelium to stimulate vasodilation plays a key role in the development of atherosclerosis and in various pathological conditions which predispose to atherosclerosis, such as hypercholesterolemia, hypertension, type 2 diabetes, hyperhomocyst (e) inemia and chronic renal failure. The major cause of the endothelial dysfunction is decreased bioavailability of nitric oxide (NO), a potent biological vasodilator produced in vascular endothelium from L-arginine by the endothelial NO synthase (eNOS). In vascular diseases, the bioavailability of NO can be impaired by various mechanisms, including decreased NO production by eNOS, and/or enhanced NO breakdown due to increased oxidative stress. The deactivation of eNOS is often associated with elevated plasma levels of its endogenous inhibitor, N(G) N(G)-dimethyl-L-arginine (ADMA). In hypercholesterolemia, a systemic deficit of NO may also increase the levels of low density lipoproteins (LDL) by modulating its synthesis and metabolism by the liver, as suggested by recent in vivo and in vitro studies using organic NO donors. Therapeutic strategies aiming to reduce the risk of vascular diseases by increasing bioavailability of NO continue to be developed. Cholesterol-lowering drugs, statins, have been shown to improve endothelial function in patients with hypercholesterolemia and atherosclerosis. Promising results were also obtained in some, but not all, vascular diseases after treatment with antioxidant vitamins (C and E) and after administration of eNOS substrate, L-arginine, or its cofactor, tetrahydrobiopterin (BH(4)). Novel strategies, which may produce beneficial changes in the vascular endothelium, include the use of natural extracts from plant foods rich in phytochemicals.
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PMID:Nitric oxide therapies in vascular diseases. 1181 65

Arteriosclerosis, atherosclerosis and vascular calcification are causally related to the high morbidity and mortality of patients with chronic renal failure. Oxidative stress and carbonyl stress of uremia, dialysis procedure and/or intravenous iron therapy result in AGE (advanced glycation end-product), ALE (advanced lipoxidation end-product) and AOPP (advanced oxidation protein product) formation, favouring together with elevated CRP (C-reactive protein) levels the development of cardiovascular and cerebrovascular complications. Enhanced plasma levels of homocysteine and ADMA (asymmetric dimethylarginine) contribute to this process. In addition, in chronic renal insufficiency hyperphosphatemia and an enhanced calcium x phosphorus ion product are associated with the morbidity and mortality of the patients, particularly in the presence of fetuin deficiency. Phosphorus, AGEs and AOPPs, beside other factors, catalyze the conversion of vascular smooth muscle cells to osteoblast--like cells (particularly in the presence of monocytes/macrophages), resulting in bone matrix protein formation. Other risk factors, such as age, male sex, smoking, hypertension, diabetes, chronic inflammation, insulin resistance or dyslipidemia (enhanced non-HDL-cholesterol) also contribute to the atherosclerotic risk profile of the patient with chronic renal insufficiency. While there is growing understanding of the mechanisms involved in arteriosclerosis, atherosclerosis and vascular calcification in uremia, we are still missing effective therapeutic maneuvers for reduction of excess mortality in uremic patients.
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PMID:[Atherosclerosis and uremia: signifance of non-traditional risk factors]. 1277 74

Hyperhomocyst(e)inemia is associated with an increased risk for atherosclerotic disease and venous thromboembolism. The impact of elevated plasma homocysteine levels seems to be clinically relevant, since the total cardiovascular risk of hyperhomocyst(e)inemia is comparable to the risk associated with hyperlipidemia or smoking. There is substantial evidence for impairment of endothelial function in human and animal models of atherosclerosis, occurring even before development of overt plaques. Interestingly endothelial dysfunction appears to be a sensitive indicator of the process of atherosclerotic lesion development and predicts future vascular events. NO is the most potent endogenous vasodilator known. It is released by the endothelium, and reduced NO bioavailability is responsible for impaired endothelium-dependent vasorelaxation in hyperhomocyst(e)inemia and other metabolic disorders associated with vascular disease. Substances leading to impaired endothelial function as a consequence of reduced NO generation are endogenous NO synthase inhibitors such as ADMA. Indeed there is accumulating evidence from animal and human studies that ADMA, endothelial function and homocyst(e)ine might be closely interrelated. Specifically elevations of ADMA associated with impaired endothelium-dependent relaxation were found in chronic hyperhomocyst(e)inemia, as well as after acute elevation of plasma homocyst(e)ine following oral methionine intake. The postulated mechanisms for ADMA accumulation are increased methylation of arginine residues within proteins, as well as reduced metabolism of ADMA by the enzyme DDAH, but they still need to be confirmed to be operative in vivo. Hyperhomocyst(e)inemia, as well as subsequent endothelial dysfunction can be successfully treated by application of folate and B vitamins. Since ADMA seems to play a central role in homocyst(e)ine-induced endothelial dysfunction, another way of preventing vascular disease in patients with elevated homocyst(e)ine concentrations could be supplementation with L-arginine to reverse the detrimental effects of ADMA.
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PMID:Asymmetric dimethyl-L-arginine (ADMA): a possible link between homocyst(e)ine and endothelial dysfunction. 1572 Feb 2

In the general population, there is a very close link between arterial hypertension and cardiovascular diseases (CVDs); hypertension is the most important predictive factor for coronary disease. In the patient with renal insufficiency, along with the classical factors behind vascular damage, there are those linked to uremia such as oxidative stress, hyperhomocysteinemia, ADMA and chronic microinflammation, responsible for the process of early atherosclerosis. Nevertheless, many questions remain unanswered concerning the optimum pressure target, both in terms of which arterial pressure could be more indicative of organ damage and the ideal pressure range for the patient. On the one hand, recent studies in populations with advanced renal insufficiency have cast doubts on the close relationship between hypertension and cardiovascular mortality, attributing a more unfavorable prognostic weight to hypotension than to hypertension. On the other hand, a new concept concerning arterial pressure has been developing over recent years, i.e. differential pressure, which is supposed to represent a vascular damage index, in terms of wall rigidity; and therefore, arterial compliance, which is more reliable, complete and dynamic as compared to the traditional pressure markers such as systolic, diastolic and mean blood pressure (BP). This renders our attempt to control the risk factors as somewhat limited, with the sole control of systolic BP and diastolic BP in absolute terms. Control that to judge from the various studies published to date, appears to be far from easy to implement in clinical practice, and above all in dialysis.
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PMID:[Arterial hypertension and cardiovascular risk in patients with nephropathy]. 1578 4

Cardiovascular risk is dramatically increased in patients with end-stage renal disease (ESRD). However, even minor dys-functions such as microalbuminuria or a mild increase in serum creatinine (Cr) have a major impact on cardiovascular risk. Increased cardiovascular risk is present in multiple populations, including general populations, patients with moderate risk such as hypertensives, and high-risk patients including patients with heart failure and myocardial necrosis. There are many mechanisms underpinning the increased cardiovascular risk. Regarding atherosclerosis, the kidney can be victim or villain. On the one hand, both kidney disease per se and renal insufficiency can induce vascular damage, thereby increasing cardiovascular risk. Kidney disease without renal insufficiency can cause an increased prevalence in hypertension, dyslipidemia (nephrotic syndrome), sympathetic system hyperactivity, and in renin angiotensin system hyperactivity. A moderate-severe renal insufficiency can induce an increase in many vasculotoxic substances such as ADMA, lipoprotein(a), homocysteine, disturbances in calcium and phosphate metabolism, anemia and left ventricular hypertrophy. A more severe renal insufficiency can induce the ominous malnutrition-inflammation-atherosclerosis (MIA) syndrome. On the other hand, the kidney can be the victim of atherosclerosis. Ischemic nephropathy, caused by atherosclerotic renal artery disease and atheroembolism from abdominal aorta are two examples. Finally, it is important to consider that the kidney, being an organ with a wide vasculature, could be a sophisticated sensor of subclinical cardiovascular damage.
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PMID:[Hypertension, atherosclerosis and kidney]. 1578 9

In the article, the main pathways of homocysteine metabolism are described, i.e. transsulfuration to cysteine and glutathione, as well as remethylation to methionine. Furthermore, formation of homocysteine thiolactone through editing mechanism with methionyl t-RNA syntethase and unusual reactivity of thiolactone against lysine epsilonNH2 groups of proteins as well as calcium dependent enzymatic hydrolysis of thiolactone are discussed. The effects of oxidative stress related to homocysteine are also reviewed. Finally, possible links of homocysteine to NO and arginine metabolism are discussed, including ADMA (N(G),N(G)-dimethylarginine). The links between metabolism of homocysteine, adenosine and other nucleosides are emphasized. In conclusion, the N-homocysteilation of proteins with thiolactone changing enormously their properties seems to be the main reason of biotoxicity of homocysteine during atherosclerosis and other diseases.
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PMID:[Molecular mechanisms of biotoxicity of homocysteine--facts and hypotheses]. 1667 74

Enzymes involved in the metabolism nitric oxide (NO) and reactive oxygen species (ROS) may play a role for the decreased availability of NO in atherosclerosis. We, therefore, hypothesized that the pattern of gene expression of these enzymes is altered in atherosclerosis. Myocardial tissue from patients with coronary heart disease (CHD) or without CHD (control group) was investigated. The level of enzymes related to NO/ROS metabolism was determined both at mRNA level and protein level by rt-PCR, real-time PCR, and western blot. The expression of NOS1-3 (synthesis of NO), arginase1 (reduction of L-arginine), p22phox (active subunit of NADPH oxidase), GTPCH (rate limiting enzyme for tetrahydrobiopterin), SOD1-3 (scavengers of superoxide anions), PRTMT1-3, and DDAH2 (involved in the metabolism of ADMA) was determined. All enzymes were found to be expressed in human myocardium. NOS isoforms were decreased in CHD in protein level, but only the downregulation of NOS3 expression reached statistical significance. The expression of PRMT1 and PRMT3 was increased. In addition, the expression of DDAH2 was reduced, both theoretically leading to an increase of ADMA concentration. SOD3 was downregulated in tissue from patients with CHD. Taken together, in myocardial tissue from patients with atherosclerosis, the expression of genes increasing ADMA levels is enhanced in contrast to a reduced expression of genes promoting NO synthesis. These results may contribute to the explanation of increased oxidative stress in atherosclerosis on the level of gene expression.
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PMID:Expression of nitric oxide related enzymes in coronary heart disease. 1670 70


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