Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
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Query: UMLS:C0020538 (hypertension)
 170,190 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

Heat shock proteins (HSPs) are present in most cells, serving as molecular chaperones, and they play a role in cell protection from damage in response to stress stimuli. However, accumulating data indicate the involvement of HSPs in the pathogenesis of diseases. The aim of this article is to update the progress concerning the role of HSPs in atherosclerosis. It has been demonstrated that HSPs are highly expressed in the atherosclerotic lesions of humans, rabbits, and apolipoprotein E-deficient mice. Risk factors for atherosclerosis, eg, infections, oxidized low density lipoprotein, oxidative stress, hypertension, and biomechanical stress, evoke HSP overexpression in endothelial cells, macrophages, and smooth muscle cells via activation of heat shock transcription factor 1. Interestingly, HSPs, normally localized within the cell, have been found as a soluble form in the blood, which is positively correlated with atherosclerosis in humans. Recently, several groups have reported that soluble HSPs specifically bind to the Toll-like receptor 4/CD14 complex, initiating an innate immune response, including the production of proinflammatory cytokines by macrophages and adhesion molecules in endothelial cells via nuclear factor-kappaB activation. Furthermore, the titers of autoantibodies against HSPs are significantly elevated in patients with atherosclerosis, and T lymphocytes specifically responding to HSPs have been found in atherosclerotic plaques. These proinflammatory responses and autoimmune reactions to HSPs in the vessel wall can contribute to the initiation and perpetuation of atherosclerosis. Thus, HSPs have a general role in the response of the arterial wall to stress and may serve as a mediator/inducer of atherosclerosis in particular circumstances.
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PMID:Role of heat shock proteins in atherosclerosis. 1237 29

Cardiovascular diseases, such as atherosclerosis and hypertension, are associated with arterial stiffening. Previous studies showed that ANG II exacerbated atherosclerosis and induced hypertension and aneurysm formation in apolipoprotein E-deficient (apoE-KO) mice. The aim of the present study was to examine the effects of chronic treatment of ANG II on the arterial elastic properties in apoE-KO mice. We hypothesized that ANG II will injure the arterial wall resulting in increased arterial stiffening. Male apoE-KO mice were infused with either ANG II (1.44 mg. kg(-1). day(-1)) or vehicle (PBS) for 30 days. ANG II treatment accelerated atherosclerosis in the carotid artery by sixfold (P < 0.001) and increased blood pressure by 30% (P < 0.05). Additionally, our data demonstrated that ANG II increased arterial stiffening using both in vivo and in vitro methods. ANG II significantly increased pulse wave velocity by 36% (P < 0.01) and decreased arterial elasticity as demonstrated by a more than 900% increase in maximal stiffening (high strain Young's modulus) compared with vehicle (P < 0.05). These functional changes were correlated with morphological and biochemical changes as demonstrated by an increase in collagen content (60%), a decrease in elastin content (74%), and breaks in the internal elastic lamina in the aortic wall. In addition, endothelium-independent vasorelaxation to sodium nitroprusside was impaired in the aortic rings of ANG II-treated mice compared with vehicle. Thus, the present data indicate that ANG II injures the artery wall in multiple ways and arterial stiffening may be a common outcome of ANG II-induced arterial damage.
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PMID:Angiotensin II injures the arterial wall causing increased aortic stiffening in apolipoprotein E-deficient mice. 1238 74

This case-control study was designed to identify risk factors for cryptogenic brain infarction. We assessed the frequency of prothrombotic states, homocysteine, lipoprotein (a) [Lp(a)] and other lipids and the apolipoprotein E phenotype together with conventional risk factors in 46 patients (19 women and 27 men) with cryptogenic brain infarction aged from 15 to 60 years and in 104 community-based controls. Multivariate odds ratios (ORs) for risk factors and 95% CIs were calculated by logistic regression. Hypertension (OR 4.5; 95% CI, 1.5-13.2; P = 0.006), current smoking (OR 2.9; 95% CI, 1.2-6.8; P = 0.012), low HDL cholesterol (HDL-C) (OR 5.4; 95% CI, 1.1-25.5; P = 0.035) and high clotting factor VIII activity (OR 3.6; 95% CI, 1.1-12.2; P = 0.041) were variables associated with cryptogenic brain infarction. These risk factors were not equally frequent in women and men. Low HDL-C and high factor VIII activity in the women, and hypertension, current smoking and a low level of plasma folate in the men were risk factors for cryptogenic stroke. Several of the observed risk factors for cryptogenic brain infarction were lifestyle-associated, which emphasizes the role of health education in addition to pharmacological treatment in the prevention of stroke.
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PMID:Risk factors for cryptogenic ischaemic stroke. 1245 78

To elucidate risk factors for cerebral amyloid angiopathy (CAA) in the elderly, we have investigated 201 autopsy cases of elderly Japanese (ages: 62-104 years), including 82 patients with Alzheimer's disease (AD). Severity of CAA showed no relationship with the history of hypertension, hyperlipidemia, or diabetes mellitus, nor with severity of atherosclerosis of cerebral and systemic arteries, indicating that common vascular risk factors would not be related to CAA. Incidence and severity of CAA were significantly higher in the AD cases compared with the non-AD cases (p < 0.0001). Severity of CAA correlated with densities of senile plaques and neurofibrillary tangles in total and non-AD cases, although the correlations were not significant within the AD cases. Associations of genetic polymorphisms with CAA have been investigated for genes of apolipoprotein E (APOE), presenilin 1 (PS1), alpha1-antichymotrypsin (ACT), butyrylcholinesterase, alpha2-macroglobulin, and paraoxonase. Severity of CAA in APOE epsilon4 carriers is significantly higher than that in non-epsilon4 carriers in total cases, although no significant difference was found in the CAA severity between the epsilon4 carriers and non-epsilon4 carriers within the AD or non-AD group. An intronic polymorphism of PS1 was significantly associated with the severity of CAA, indicating that the PS1 2/2 genotype may be related to lower risk of CAA. A polymorphism in the signal peptide sequence of ACT was significantly associated with the CAA severity in the AD group. Our results suggest that CAA shares risk factors with AD and that multiple genetic factors would be associated with the risk of CAA in the elderly.
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PMID:Risk factors for cerebral amyloid angiopathy in the elderly. 1248 Jul 32

The clinical significance of the apolipoprotein E genotype in patients with hypertension has been a subject of debate. We enrolled 94 patients with hypertension and 102 healthy controls in this study and determined their plasma levels of triglyceride, total cholesterol, high- and low-density lipoprotein-cholesterol, apolipoprotein AI, and apolipoprotein B. The apolipoprotein E genotypes were identified by polymerase chain reaction, restriction fragment length polymorphism, and polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. Apolipoprotein E3/4 genotype and set membership, vertical bar on horizontal stroke 4 allele frequencies in the hypertensive group were higher than in controls. In hypertensive patients with apolipoprotein E3/4 and E4/4 genotypes, systolic blood pressure was significantly higher than in those with apolipoprotein E2/3 or E3/3 genotypes. Meanwhile, the plasma levels of total cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein-cholesterol, and apolipoprotein B were higher in hypertensive patients with the.4 allele than the set membership, vertical bar on horizontal stroke 2 or set membership, vertical bar on horizontal stroke 3 allele. The echographic measurements of carotid artery intimal-medial thickness showed increasing values from set membership, vertical bar on horizontal stroke 2 to set membership, vertical bar on horizontal stroke 4 allele carriers in the hypertensive group. Analysis of variance showed that the carotid intimal-medial thickness was significantly greater in hypertensive patients with set membership, vertical bar on horizontal stroke 4 alleles compared with set membership, vertical bar on horizontal stroke 2 or set membership, vertical bar on horizontal stroke 3 alleles. Our data show an association between apolipoprotein E genotype and hypertension and support the hypothesis that the apolipoprotein set membership, vertical bar on horizontal stroke 4 allele is a susceptibility locus for systolic hypertension and carotid artery atherosclerosis.
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PMID:Association of apolipoprotein E gene polymorphism with essential hypertension and its complications. 1262 8

There is much evidence suggesting that there is a strong relationship between the deterioration of brain lipid homeostasis, vascular changes and the pathogenesis of Alzheimer's disease (AD). These associations include: (1). recognition that a key cholesterol transporter, apolipoprotein E type 4, acts a major genetic risk factor for both familial and sporadic AD; (2). epidemiological studies linking cardiovascular risk factors, such as hypertension and high plasma cholesterol, to dementia; (3). the discovery that small strokes can precipitate clinical dementia in cognitively normal elderly subjects; (4). the modulation of degradation of the amyloid precursor protein by cholesterol administration in cell culture and in animal models of beta-amyloid overproduction; and (5). the beneficial effect of cholesterol-lowering drugs, such as Probucol and statins, in combating common AD. The recent finding that there is a genetic association between the HMGR gene locus and sporadic AD further suggests that brain cholesterol metabolism is central to AD pathophysiology, and a potential therapeutic target for disease stabilization and primary disease prevention.
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PMID:Apolipoprotein E and cholesterol metabolism in the pathogenesis and treatment of Alzheimer's disease. 1265 30

Cardiovascular, cerebrovascular and peripheral vascular diseases are the largest cause-specific reason for morbidity and mortality in end-stage renal disease (ESRD) patients. High prevalence of cardio- and cerebrovascular death may be explained by multiple factors present in patients with progressive renal disease, including hypertension, hyprelipidemia, hyperhomocysteinemia, diabetes mellitus, and hyperparathyroidism. Experimental studies have provided in vivo and in vitro data to support the notion that lipid abnormalities contribute to glomerular and interstitial injury of the renal parenchyma. Hypercholesterolemia and increased low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol are prevalent in patients with the nephrotic syndrome. Plasma high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol is decreased, and reverse cholesterol transport is impaired in hemodialysis (HD) and pre-ESRD patients. Chronic renal failure patients treated with HD have an increased prevalence of intermediate-density lipoprotein (IDL), and lipoprotein(a). The findings in the diabetic patients corresponded to those in non-diabetic patients with renal failure, but diabetic patients have higher apolipoprotein C-III and apolipoprotein E concentrations. Impaired lipid metabolism is common in patients receiving peritoneal dialysis (PD). In the most of the ESRD patients treated with peritoneal dialysis hypercholesterolemia and hypertriglyceridemia are found. Wide panels of therapeutic interventions aimed at correcting the lipid abnormalities that may develop in chronic renal patients, as well as in ESRD patients are currently available. Although some novel pharmacological agents are remarkably effective for returning the lipid abnormalities to normal, there is still no convincing evidence based on long-term prospective studies which clearly demonstrate a significant reduction in cardiovascular morbidity and mortality of ESRD patients. The therapeutic approaches, which may be considered, include mainly dietary and life-style modifications, selective use of some technical components of dialysis systems, and the judicious prescriptions of lipid-lowering drugs.
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PMID:[Lipoprotein disorders in chronic kidney failure, nephrotic syndrome and dialysis]. 1267 79

Current strategies for both the primary and secondary prevention of coronary heart disease (CHD) focus on the traditional risk factors, such as hypertension, smoking cessation, and cholesterol, as the primary determinants of the cardiac risk profile, with particular emphasis on the reduction of low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) to targeted goal levels as endorsed by the National Cholesterol Education Program (NCEP) Adult Treatment Panel III (ATPIII). Large primary and secondary prevention trials with the hydroxymethylglutaryl-coenzyme A (HMG-CoA) reductase inhibitors (statins) have demonstrated varying reductions in cardiovascular events associated with similar changes in LDL-C levels, suggesting statins may possess additional beneficial effects on other risk factors. Retrospective analyses of many statin trials have evaluated the association between several polymorphic candidate genes (apolipoprotein E, stromelysin-1, beta-fibrinogen, cholesteryl ester transfer protein, lipoprotein lipase, hepatic lipase, and platelet glycoprotein III) which have been identified as predictors of disease severity and both metabolic and clinical response to statin therapy. These results suggest that statin therapy improves plasma lipid profiles in all patients, but preferentially benefits individuals who carry a high risk, variant genotype for these risk factors as compared to individuals with the wild-type genotype. These observations suggest that determining individual patient genotype may be useful in optimizing the benefits of statin therapy. These hypothesis-generating data need to be prospectively evaluated in genotyped patients.
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PMID:Genetic polymorphisms in emerging cardiovascular risk factors and response to statin therapy. 1284 89

Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptors (PPARs) are ligand-activated nuclear receptors which regulate the expression of target genes. Three types of PPAR have been identified: PPAR alpha, PPAR beta/delta and PPAR gamma. The known endogenous PPAR ligands are polyunsaturated fatty acids and eicosanoids, such as 15-deoxy-delta 12,14-prostaglandin J2 and leukotriene B4. Two classes of drugs, fibrates and thiazolidinediones, bind to PPAR alpha and PPAR gamma, respectively. PPARs are involved in the regulation of the lipid metabolism and adipogenesis but are also expressed in the vasculature. PPARs activators inhibit inflammatory reactions within the vascular wall, inhibit vascular smooth muscle cells migration and proliferation and affect foam cells formation by changing the expression of scavenger receptors. PPAR agonists lower blood pressure and improve endothelial function in different animal models of hypertension as well as in humans. PPAR gamma ligands inhibit the development of atherosclerosis in LDL receptor deficient and apolipoprotein E deficient mice and in diabetic humans. PPAR gamma agonists have also been shown to attenuate myocardial hypertrophy and protect against ischemia-reperfuion injury.
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PMID:[Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptors (PPAR) in pathophysiology of the circulatory system and prospective use of agonists of these receptors in therapy]. 1286 56

Several predispocitional and genetic factors are thought to be involved in the etiology of Alzheimer s disease (AD). Except for age, there is no consensus among researchers about the factors that can best predict AD. Some studies have found that, older women, cerebrovascular risk factors (hypertension, ischemic heart disease, diabetes mellitus), and the presence of the apolipoprotein E (APOE) 4 allele to be associated with the development of dementia and AD. However, there are a few large scale studies that have entered magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) findings in the analysis of risk factors for AD. The Cardiovascular Health Study Cognition Study evaluated the determinants of the risk of dementia, diagnosed in 1998 99, among 3608 participants >65 years of age who had MRIof the brain in 1991 through 1994. In this cohort, there were 480 incident dementia cases, and 330 were diagnosed as AD. The CHS found that age, Modified Mini Mental State Examination scores, cerebral ventricular size, severity of white matter lesions, number of MRI identified infarcts, and the presence of the APOE 4 allele were predictors of dementia. This study showed the importance of controlling for neuroimaging findings the study of risk factors for dementia. Scores of global cognitive measures, the presence of the APOE 4 allele, and MRI of the brain were strong predictors of dementia and AD.
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PMID:[Risk factors for dementia in the Cardiovascular Health Study cognition study]. 1293 70


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