Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
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Query: UMLS:C0004153 (atherosclerosis)
 77,401 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

Platelets play a critical role in the pathophysiology of amaurosis fugax. Emboli to retinal vessels apparently produce amaurosis but, in addition, we propose that augmented vasoconstrictor responses and vasospasm may contribute to amaurosis. In this study we tested the hypothesis that constrictor responses of retinal vessels to serotonin, which is released when platelets aggregate, are potentiated in experimental atherosclerosis. Blood flow to the retina was measured in normal and atherosclerotic cynomolgus monkeys. In normal monkeys, infusion of serotonin did not alter flow to the retina. In atherosclerotic monkeys, infusion of serotonin reduced retinal blood flow (in milliliters per minute per 100 g) from 66 +/- 7 (mean +/- SE) to 5 +/- 2. Infusion of serotonin in atherosclerotic monkeys abolished the retinal response to light. Thus, atherosclerosis greatly potentiates constrictor responses to serotonin in the retinal circulation and produces a profound but reversible impairment of retinal function. We propose that altered responses to vasoactive substances that are released by platelets may contribute to the pathogenesis of amaurosis fugax.
J Cereb Blood Flow Metab 1989 Feb
PMID:Hypothesis: vasoconstriction contributes to amaurosis fugax. 291 Aug 92

A review and a reappraisal are presented of earlier data on cerebral circulatory and metabolic studies in normal active elderly men (Group I) of mean age 71 years, compared with normal young subjects of mean age 21 years, conducted at the National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, U.S.A., during 1956-1958. There was no significant difference in the mean CBF and cerebral metabolic rate for oxygen (CMRO2) values between the two populations; i.e., these important parameters did not fall with chronological aging per se. There was significant depression in the mean cerebral metabolic rate for glucose (CMRG) value (by approximately 23%) in the aged compared with the young. Newer methods using positron emission tomography and appropriate isotopes have confirmed these findings in normal aging in human subjects and experimental animals. As expected, MABP and cerebral vascular resistance (CVR) were significantly elevated in the normal aged. MABP was even more elevated in elderly hypertensive subjects, and the CVR more elevated in the subjects with arteriosclerosis (Group II), who also showed a small but significant fall in CBF and in internal jugular venous PO2. The CBF showed a more pronounced fall in senile aged patients with chronic brain syndrome (Group III), in whom the CMRO2 also showed a marked drop (by approximately 22%); the CMRG fell still further (approximately 40% of that in the young). Of the few aged subjects followed up after a lapse of 11 years by a repeat estimation of the same physiological and psychological parameters and of the EEG, most showed clear worsening, together with a fall in overall physical and intellectual performance, probably related to a rise in CVR and an increase in atherosclerosis with aging.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
J Cereb Blood Flow Metab 1985 Mar
PMID:Cerebral blood flow and metabolism in normal human aging, pathological aging, and senile dementia. 397 14

The properties of CDP-choline:1,2-diacylglycerol cholinephosphotransferase (CPT) (EC 2.7.8.2.), which catalyzes de novo synthesis of phosphatidylcholine, were studied in rat arterial wall. The optimal pH of CPT of the arterial wall was about 8.5. On subcellular fractionation of the arterial wall, the highest activity was found in the microsome-rich fraction; the cytosolic fraction showed only a trace of activity. The Michaelis constant (KM) for CDP-choline was 0.019 mM. The CPT activity of a homogenate of arterial wall increased linearly with increase in concentration of diolein up to 3.2 mM. 20 mM magnesium and 0.2 mM manganese ions caused marked activation respectively and essential for the activity. Calcium, barium, cobalt, copper, and ferrous ions were inhibitory. 0.5 mM ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA) and 0.5 mM glycoletherdiamine-N,N,N'N'-tetraacetic acid (GEDTA) increased the activity in the presence of 10 mM magnesium ion. Sonication of the enzyme solution and addition of high concentration of detergent, such as Triton X-100 and Tween 20, markedly decreased the activity. Porcine liver phosphatidylcholine, phosphatidylethanolamine, and especially polyenephosphatidylcholine increased CPT activity of the arterial wall, while lysophosphatidylcholine was strongly inhibitory. The properties of arterial CPT activity under various conditions are discussed.
Atherosclerosis 1982 Jun
PMID:Studies on CDP-choline:1,2-diacylglycerol cholinephosphotransferase activity in rat arterial wall. 628 57

Stroke has enormous clinical, social, and economic implications, and demands a significant effort from both basic and clinical science in the search for successful therapies. Atherosclerosis, the pathologic process underlying most coronary artery disease and the majority of ischemic stroke in humans, is an inflammatory process. Complex interactions occur between the classic risk factors for atherosclerosis and its clinical consequences. These interactions appear to involve inflammatory mechanisms both in the periphery and in the CNS. Central nervous system inflammation is important in the pathophysiologic processes occurring after the onset of cerebral ischemia in ischemic stroke, subarachnoid hemorrhage, and head injury. In addition, inflammation in the CNS or in the periphery may be a risk factor for the initial development of cerebral ischemia. Peripheral infection and inflammatory processes are likely to be important in this respect. Thus, it appears that inflammation may be important both before, in predisposing to a stroke, and afterwards, where it is important in the mechanisms of cerebral injury and repair. Inflammation is mediated by both molecular components, including cytokines, and cellular components, such as leukocytes and microglia, many of which possess pro- and/or antiinflammatory properties, with harmful or beneficial effects. Classic acute-phase reactants and body temperature are also modified in stroke, and may be useful in the prediction of events, outcome, and as therapeutic targets. New imaging techniques are important clinically because they facilitate dynamic evaluation of tissue damage in relation to outcome. Inflammatory conditions such as giant cell arteritis and systemic lupus erythematosus predispose to stroke, as do a range of acute and chronic infections, principally respiratory. Diverse mechanisms have been proposed to account for inflammation and infection-associated stroke, ranging from classic risk factors to disturbances of the immune and coagulation systems. Considerable opportunities therefore exist for the development of novel therapies. It seems likely that drugs currently used in the treatment of stroke, such as aspirin, statins, and modulators of the renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system, act at least partly via antiinflammatory mechanisms. Newer approaches have included antimicrobial and antileukocyte strategies. One of the most promising avenues may be the use of cytokine antagonism, for example, interleukin-1 receptor antagonist.
J Cereb Blood Flow Metab 2002 Dec
PMID:Inflammation and infection in clinical stroke. 1246 86

Patients with end-stage renal disease (ESRD) undergoing hemodialysis are known to suffer cognitive deficits and stroke of unknown etiology. It has been suspected that the treatment itself may contribute to the syndrome by unknown mechanisms, which we investigated in this study. End-stage renal disease patients on hemodialysis (n=19) or peritoneal dialysis (PD, n=5) were compared with 14 healthy controls. Subjects participated in magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) measurements of cerebral atrophy, cerebral blood flow (CBF) arterial spin labeled-MRI (ASL-MRI), quantitative Doppler blood flow through the internal carotid artery, and cerebral oxymetry. The Doppler and oxymetry procedures were also performed at the beginning and end of a single hemodialysis session. End-stage renal disease patients on hemodialysis showed significant cerebral atrophy, associated with longer hemodialysis duration and cognitive deficits, including focal bilateral lesions in the caudate nucleus and midbrain. Cerebral oxygenation was extremely low before dialysis (rSO(2) 41+/-13, compared with 70+/-2 in controls, P<0.02) and improved only slightly after dialysis. Carotid blood flow was also very low at the start of dialysis (115+/-28 mL/sec, versus 193+/-56 in controls, P<0.005) but normalized at the end of the session (181 mL/sec). The PD patients showed intermediate values, between the hemodialysis and controls. Notably, duration of hemodialysis treatment predicted global gray-matter volume (r=-0.74), change of blood flow during dialysis (r=-0.65), and baseline rSO(2) (r=-0.65). The findings suggest that ESRD patients on hemodialysis suffer low CBF during the interdialytic cycle. Coupled with low cerebral oxygenation levels and atherosclerosis, this may contribute significantly to the etiology of the observed cerebral atrophy, cognitive deficits, and high stroke prevalence.
J Cereb Blood Flow Metab 2007 Nov
PMID:Cerebrovascular effects of hemodialysis in chronic kidney disease. 1740 58

There are no biomarkers that differentiate cardioembolic from large-vessel atherosclerotic stroke, although the treatments differ for each and approximately 30% of strokes and transient ischemic attacks have undetermined etiologies using current clinical criteria. We aimed to define gene expression profiles in blood that differentiate cardioembolic from large-vessel atherosclerotic stroke. Peripheral blood samples were obtained from healthy controls and acute ischemic stroke patients (<3, 5, and 24 h). RNA was purified, labeled, and applied to Affymetrix Human U133 Plus 2.0 Arrays. Expression profiles in the blood of cardioembolic stroke patients are distinctive from those of large-vessel atherosclerotic stroke patients. Seventy-seven genes differ at least 1.5-fold between them, and a minimum number of 23 genes differentiate the two types of stroke with at least 95.2% specificity and 95.2% sensitivity for each. Genes regulated in large-vessel atherosclerotic stroke are expressed in platelets and monocytes and modulate hemostasis. Genes regulated in cardioembolic stroke are expressed in neutrophils and modulate immune responses to infectious stimuli. This new method can be used to predict whether a stroke of unknown etiology was because of cardioembolism or large-vessel atherosclerosis that would lead to different therapy. These results have wide ranging implications for similar disorders.
J Cereb Blood Flow Metab 2008 Jul
PMID:Gene expression in peripheral blood differs after cardioembolic compared with large-vessel atherosclerotic stroke: biomarkers for the etiology of ischemic stroke. 1838 70

Homocysteine (Hcy) is a risk factor for vascular dysfunction. High levels of Hcy may result in vascular injury accelerating atherosclerosis leading to ischemia. After ischemia, endothelial progenitor cells (EPCs) migrate from bone marrow to repair damaged sites either through direct incorporation of EPCs or by repopulating mature endothelial cells. This study looks into the relationship between increased Hcy in patients with cerebrovascular disease (CVD) and EPCs. Some patients with hyperhomocysteinemia were treated with B vitamins to evaluate if the treatment reverses the elevated Hcy and its impact on their EPC levels. EPCs were treated with Hcy to determine the in vitro effects of Hcy. Our clinical findings show that elevated Hcy levels have an inverse relationship with EPC levels and B vitamin intervention can reverse this effect. Our in vitro work shows that Hcy-mediated EPC toxicity is due to apoptosis involving caspase-8, cytochrome c release, and caspase-3 activation. Vitamin B(6), and B(9) significantly impair Hcy-mediated EPC caspase-3 activation in vitro. Our clinical and in vitro data together indicate that increased Hcy results in a decrease in EPC numbers. This decrease in EPC by Hcy may be occurring through increased apoptosis and B vitamins (B(6), B(9)) intervention can attenuate such effects.
J Cereb Blood Flow Metab 2009 Jan
PMID:Homocysteine reduces endothelial progenitor cells in stroke patients through apoptosis. 1876 98

Neurovascular remodeling has been recently recognized as a promising target for neurologic therapies. Hopes have emerged that, by stimulating vessel growth, it may be possible to stabilize brain perfusion, and at the same time promote neuronal survival, brain plasticity, and neurologic recovery. In this review, we outline the role of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) in the ischemic brain, analyzing how this growth factor contributes to brain remodeling. Studies with therapeutic VEGF administration resulted in quite variable results depending on the route and time point of delivery. Local VEGF administration consistently enhanced neurologic recovery, whereas acute intravenous delivery exacerbated brain infarcts due to enhanced brain edema. Future studies should answer the following questions: (1) whether increased vessel density translates into improvements in blood flow in the hemodynamically compromised brain; (2) how VEGF influences brain plasticity and contributes to motor and nonmotor recovery; (3) what are the actions of VEGF not only in young animals with preserved vasculature, on which previous studies have been conducted, but also in aged animals and in animals with preexisting atherosclerosis; and (4) whether the effects of VEGF can be mimicked by pharmacological compounds or by cell-based therapies. Only on the basis of such information can more definite conclusions be made with regard to whether the translation of therapeutic angiogenesis into clinics is promising.
J Cereb Blood Flow Metab 2009 Oct
PMID:Implications of vascular endothelial growth factor for postischemic neurovascular remodeling. 1965 90

Superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles have diverse diagnostic and potential therapeutic applications in the central nervous system (CNS). They are useful as magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) contrast agents to evaluate: areas of blood-brain barrier (BBB) dysfunction related to tumors and other neuroinflammatory pathologies, the cerebrovasculature using perfusion-weighted MRI sequences, and in vivo cellular tracking in CNS disease or injury. Novel, targeted, nanoparticle synthesis strategies will allow for a rapidly expanding range of applications in patients with brain tumors, cerebral ischemia or stroke, carotid atherosclerosis, multiple sclerosis, traumatic brain injury, and epilepsy. These strategies may ultimately improve disease detection, therapeutic monitoring, and treatment efficacy especially in the context of antiangiogenic chemotherapy and antiinflammatory medications. The purpose of this review is to outline the current status of superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles in the context of biomedical nanotechnology as they apply to diagnostic MRI and potential therapeutic applications in neurooncology and other CNS inflammatory conditions.
J Cereb Blood Flow Metab 2010 Jan
PMID:Superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles: diagnostic magnetic resonance imaging and potential therapeutic applications in neurooncology and central nervous system inflammatory pathologies, a review. 1975 21

Hemispheric ratios of oxygen extraction fraction (OEF), a proven methodology for the detection of severe hemodynamic impairment and stroke risk, are not sensitive for detecting bilateral hemispheric increases in OEF. The aim of this study was to investigate the use of cerebellum as the reference normal. We analyzed positron emission tomographic (PET) measurements of count-based OEF and clinical data from 57 patients with unilateral atherosclerotic carotid occlusion and 13 controls enrolled in a prospective study of stroke risk. The ipsilateral, contralateral, and total cerebellum were each evaluated as possible reference regions, and the ratios of the middle cerebral artery (MCA) hemispheric OEF counts against those in each reference region were determined. A statistically significant correlation (P<0.0001) was observed with all three MCA-to-cerebellar ratios when compared with the gold standard of ipsilateral-to-contralateral MCA hemispheric ratio. Kaplan-Meier analyses showed all MCA-to-cerebellar ratios to be predictive of stroke. By using the total cerebellum method, 7 strokes were found to have occurred in 20 patients with increased OEF (P=0.0007), compared with 7 strokes out of 16 patients with elevated OEF using the ipsilateral or contralateral cerebellum methods (P<0.0001). These methods may be useful for categorizing the hemodynamic status of patients with bilateral cerebral occlusive diseases, including atherosclerosis and moyamoya, to determine the association with the risk of subsequent stroke.
J Cereb Blood Flow Metab 2010 Oct
PMID:Cerebellum as the normal reference for the detection of increased cerebral oxygen extraction. 2037 71


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