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Query: UMLS:C0020538 (hypertension)
 170,190 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

Renin-aldosterone profiling was used to classify patients with hypertension: 243 patients with essential hypertension were classified by renin-urinary sodium indexing; 107 were reclassified by response to administration of furosemide and intravenous saline; 45 were further classified by response to a low-sodium diet. Arbitrary "normal ranges" were determined in 89, 32, and 38 volunteers, respectively. Patients with low-renin apparently do not have "high-volume" hypertension. Rather, they show a primary renal abnormality in renin secretion and become relatively deficient in angiotensin II and aldosterone when they are subjected to diuresis. They can maintain aldosterone secretion under normal conditions because their adrenal aldosterone receptor is supersensitive to angiotensin II. No evidence of abnormal sympathetic neural activity was found among the renin subgroups. Renin-aldosterone profiling in current clinical practice seems useful mainly in the detection of patients with curable forms of secondary hypertension. Aldosterone/renin ratios may be particularly helpful in diagnosis when obtained after a patient has undergone expansion or contraction of his extracellular fluid volume.
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PMID:Renin-aldosterone profiling in hypertension. 33 42

Left ventricular hypertrophy is a major risk factor associated with the appearance of adverse cardiovascular events. A distortion in myocardial structure, mediated by an abnormal accumulation of fibrillar collagen within the adventitia of intramyocardial coronary arteries and neighbouring interstitial spaces, alters the electrical and mechanical behaviour of the myocardium. The mechanisms responsible for the regulation of cardiac myocyte growth and collagen accumulation are therefore of considerable interest. Herein we review results of in vivo studies conducted in the authors' laboratory that addressed these issues in various experimental models. The findings indicate that in arterial hypertension myocardial hypertrophy is related to ventricular systolic pressure work. Myocardial fibrosis, on the other hand, is not related to haemodynamic workload, but rather the presence of mineralocorticoid excess relative to sodium intake and excretion. Accordingly, fibrosis can appear in both the hypertensive left and non-hypertensive right ventricles. Pharmacological probes, administered in variable doses, were used to further test and support this hypothesis. In both primary and secondary hyperaldosteronism, it was possible to prevent the pathological structural remodelling of the myocardium with an aldosterone receptor antagonist, while in unilateral renal ischaemia ACE inhibition was similarly cardioprotective. Other studies demonstrated that it was feasible to regress the fibrous tissue response and normalise diastolic stiffness. This concept of cardioreparation suggests that heart failure due to this type of structural remodelling may be reversible.
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PMID:Regulatory mechanisms of myocardial hypertrophy and fibrosis: results of in vivo studies. 130 Dec 54

The development of hypertension in the S/JR rat is accelerated and exacerbated by a high salt consumption. It has been reported that the intracerebroventricular infusion of RU28318, a selective mineralocorticoid antagonist, at doses that are ineffective when administered subcutaneously, inhibits the development of the hypertension produced by the subcutaneous infusion of aldosterone or deoxycorticosterone in normotensive rats. RU28318 was continuously infused intracerebroventricularly or subcutaneously in Dahl S/JR rats before or after the onset of hypertension induced by a high-salt diet. The centrally infused mineralocorticoid antagonist inhibited the initiation of the increase in blood pressure, when the infusion was started concomitantly with the high-salt diet, and blocked its further increase in rats whose blood pressure had already become significantly elevated with 2 wk of a high-salt diet. The subcutaneously infused mineralocorticoid antagonist had no effect. These data serve to strengthen the hypothesis that the mineralocorticoid receptor in the brain is crucial to the genesis of certain forms of hypertension.
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PMID:Central mineralocorticoid receptor antagonism blocks hypertension in Dahl S/JR rats. 131 Feb 19

To examine the role of mineralocorticoids in the pathophysiology of pregnancy-induced hypertension (PIH), we studied plasma aldosterone and 18-hydroxycorticosterone levels in 25 women with PIH and 25 normal pregnant women, as controls. Furthermore, we evaluated the mineralocorticoid receptor (MR) status in mononuclear leukocytes in the 2 groups. MR count was significantly (P less than 0.0005) decreased in the PIH group (148 +/- 9 binding sites/cell) compared with the control group (300 +/- 17 binding sites/cell; mean +/- SEM). Plasma aldosterone in women with PIH was 281 +/- 61 pmol/L; in normal pregnant women it was 697 +/- 172 pmol/L (P less than 0.025). Plasma 18-hydroxycorticosterone was also significantly (P less than 0.025) lower (PIH, 1071 +/- 149 pmol/L; controls, 1907 +/- 318 pmol/L). These values were determined at the onset of clinical symptoms of PIH. These results cannot be explained by receptor down-regulation due to higher levels of mineralocorticoids in PIH; a hitherto unknown mineralocorticoid may, thus, be responsible for the hypertension and altered MR status.
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PMID:Mineralocorticoids and mineralocorticoid receptors in mononuclear leukocytes in patients with pregnancy-induced hypertension. 131 41

Aldosterone, like other steroid hormones, initiates its effects by binding to intracellular receptors; these receptors are then able to control the transcription of several genes. The products of these genes eventually modulate the activity of ionic transport systems located in the apical and the basolateral membrane of specialized epithelial cells, thereby modulating the excretion of Na+ and K+ ions. Considerable progress has been made recently in understanding these mechanisms and the structure of the proteins involved in these processes. A novel principle has been discovered to explain the selective effect of aldosterone on its target epithelia. These tissues exclude competing glucocorticoid hormones by the activity of the 11 beta-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase to allow aldosterone, an enzyme-resistant steroid, to bind to its receptors. Aldosterone induces numerous changes in the activity of membrane ion transport systems and enzymes and cell morphology. Although the enhancement of Na,K-ATPase synthesis and the increase of the number of active Na+ channels in the apical membrane appear as both direct and primary effects, the mechanisms of the other effects remain to be determined. The knowledge of the primary structure of several elements of the aldosterone response system (e.g., mineralocorticoid receptor and Na,K-ATPase) allows us to understand abnormal regulation of Na+ balance at the molecular level and, potentially, to identify genetic alterations responsible for these defects.
Hypertension 1992 Mar
PMID:Aldosterone regulation of gene transcription leading to control of ion transport. 137 88

The cardiac interstitium is composed of non-myocyte cells and a structural fibrillar protein network which plays a dominant role in governing the structure, architecture, and mechanical behaviour of the myocardium. Herein we review the fibrillar collagen network, its various components, and the functions they serve in the normal and structurally remodelled myocardium in arterial hypertension. The heterogeneity in myocardial structure, created by the altered behaviour of non-myocyte cells, particularly cardiac fibroblasts, which are responsible for collagen synthesis or degradation and thereby fibrous tissue accumulation, is a major determinant for the appearance of diastolic dysfunction and ultimately systolic myocardial failure. Regulatory mechanisms related to this fibrous tissue response are reviewed to draw attention to the hitherto neglected role of cardiac fibroblasts in mediating adverse structural remodelling of the myocardium and showing how this can be prevented through the use of pharmacological agents that interfere with the regulation of the myocardial collagen matrix. Several lines of evidence suggest that circulating and tissue renin-angiotensin-aldosterone systems (RAAS) are involved in the structural remodelling of the non-myocyte compartment. These include the cardioprotective effects of angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE) inhibition and aldosterone receptor antagonism that were found to prevent myocardial fibrosis in the rat with renovascular hypertension. In the rat with genetic hypertension, established left ventricular hypertrophy and abnormal myocardial diastolic stiffness due to interstitial fibrosis, RAAS inhibition resulted in restoration of myocardial structure and function to normal.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
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PMID:Myocardial collagen matrix remodelling in arterial hypertension. 139 56

Epidemiological data have revealed that the progestogen in oral contraceptives (OCs) is involved in hypertension, ischemic heart diseases, and stroke. Atherosclerotic lesions were implicated owing to the androgenic properties of progestogens. However, atherosclerosis did not develop despite reduced high density lipoprotein (HDL) and elevated low density lipoprotein (LDL), presumably because of the strong effect of ethinyl estradiol (EE) upon induction of hepatic LDL- and remnant-receptors. A series of findings indicate that vasospasms caused by the effect of progestogens are involved in arterial thromboses. In postmenopausal women, the addition of progestogens to the estrogen treatment may trigger ischemic diseases. Estrogens exert a vasodilatory effect and stabilize the vascular tonus through the responsiveness of the endothelium, neurotransmitter release, and direct blocking of calcium channels. Progestogens increase the sensitivity of arteries to vasoconstrictory compounds and reduce blood flow. In women treated with ovulation inhibitors, and EE-induced activation of the renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system was observed. Aldosterone acts vasodilatorily, while progestogens with high affinity to the aldosterone receptor may exert a strong vasoconstrictory effect. If vascular lesions are present, the vasoconstrictory action of progestogens may cause acute ischemic attacks. Therefore, the lowest effective dose of the progestogen has to be used for replacement therapy. In hysterectomized women, the extra administration of progestogens should be avoided and in women with arterial diseases they should be prescribed with discretion. Additional progestogens given for 14 days 3 months apart may suffice for the prevention of endometrial hyperplasia. Both the EE and progestogen doses in OCs should be reduced. Progestogen-dominant ovulation inhibitors should be restricted to cases with an additional indication.
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PMID:[Hormonal contraception and substitution therapy: the importance of progestogen for cardiovascular diseases]. 145

The apparent mineralocorticoid excess syndrome of patients ingesting large amounts of licorice or its derivatives is thought to be caused by the antagonism by these compounds of the enzyme 11 beta-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase (11 beta-HSD). 11 beta-HSD inactivates cortisol and corticosterone, allowing the more abundantly produced glucocorticoids access to the mineralocorticoid receptor (MR) in the kidney, where they act as mineralocorticoids. We have found that the infusion of both glycyrrhizic acid, an active principle of licorice, and carbenoxolone, a synthetic analogue, into a lateral ventricle of the brain [intracerebroventricular (icv)] of a rat, at a dose less than that which has an effect when infused subcutaneously, produces hypertension. Furthermore, the hypertension produced by the oral administration of carbenoxolone or glycyrrhizic acid is blocked by the icv administration of RU 28318, an MR antagonist, at a dose below that which has an effect on blood pressure when infused subcutaneously. While the oral administration caused saline polydipsia and polyuria typical of chronic systemic mineralocorticoid excess, the icv licorice derivatives produced hypertension without affecting saline appetite. Sensitizing the rats to mineralocorticoid hypertension by renal mass reduction and increasing salt consumption was not necessary for the production of hypertension. These findings provide additional evidence for a central role in blood pressure control by mineralocorticoids that is distinct from their renal effects. They also suggest that more is involved in licorice-induced hypertension than only inhibition of 11 beta-HSD.
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PMID:Central hypertensinogenic effects of glycyrrhizic acid and carbenoxolone. 147 86

Eleven-beta-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase (11 beta OHSD) protects the aldosterone receptor (MR) against its occupancy by glucocorticoid hormones. We examined the intrarenal distribution of 11 beta OHSD, as compared to that of MR. MR were localized in histological sections from rabbit kidney, using immunohistochemical methods with an anti-MR monoclonal antibody. 11 beta OHSD activity was measured in isolated tubular segments from rabbit, rat and mouse kidneys. Tubules were incubated in the presence of tritiated corticosterone (3H-B:2 x 10(-8)M). Then the rate of degradation of 3H-B into 3H-11-dehydrocorticosterone (3H-A) was determined by HPLC. MR was immunodetected in the distal tubule and the collecting duct. No positive staining was present in the proximal tubule. The conversion rate of 3H-B into 3H-A was high (approximately 80%) in the distal and collecting tubule. It was low in the proximal tubule (less than 15%) except in the rat (approximately 50%). These results indicate that MR and 11OHSD are colocalized along the mammalian nephron. This colocalization constitutes a strong argument in favor of the MR-protective role of 11 beta OHSD, and of a role of a defect of this enzyme in the genesis of some types of arterial hypertension.
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PMID:[A new regulatory mechanism of the action of corticosteroid hormones: cellular 11beta-hydroxycorticosteroid dehydrogenase]. 150 75

We have previously demonstrated that baroreceptor discharge sensitivity is depressed in dogs with experimental heart failure and that this depressed sensitivity can be reversed by the Na+,K(+)-ATPase inhibitor ouabain. This suggests that enhanced Na+,K(+)-ATPase activity in baroreceptors is responsible for the blunted baroreceptor discharge sensitivity seen in heart failure state. Because aldosterone, a known stimulator of Na+,K(+)-ATPase, is elevated in heart failure the present study was undertaken to determine the effects on baroreceptor discharge of perfusion of the carotid sinus with aldosterone in normotensive dogs. Single unit baroreceptor activity was recorded as well as carotid sinus pressure and the diameter of the carotid sinus. Perfusion of the carotid sinus with aldosterone (in Krebs-Henseleit solution) significantly elevated threshold pressure (108.5 +/- 3.1 mm Hg versus 92.7 +/- 4.6 mm Hg, p less than 0.05) and reduced peak discharge rate (40.3 +/- 3.9 spikes/sec, p less than 0.05). These effects appeared 15 minutes after aldosterone perfusion and remained constant for the next 60 minutes. There was no change in the carotid sinus pressure-diameter curve during perfusion with aldosterone. Perfusion of the carotid sinus with ouabain (0.1 microgram/ml) during aldosterone perfusion did not reverse the blunted baroreceptor discharge. The blunted baroreceptor activity induced by perfusion of the carotid sinus with aldosterone was prevented by removal of the endothelial cells in the carotid sinus area with a balloon-tipped catheter or by perfusion with saponin. Finally, perfusion of the carotid sinus with spironolactone (10 ng/ml), a mineralocorticoid receptor antagonist, prevented the inhibitory effect of aldosterone. These data suggest that aldosterone reduces maximum baroreceptor discharge.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Hypertension 1992 Mar
PMID:Aldosterone reduces baroreceptor discharge in the dog. 154 52


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