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Query: UMLS:C0038454 (stroke)
 147,016 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

High potassium diets greatly reduce intimal and medial thickening in stroke-prone spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHRSP). In vascular smooth muscle cells, transforming growth factor-beta (TGF-beta) inhibits proliferation. To test whether high potassium diets decrease aortic thickening through TGF-beta, we measured TGF-beta-like activity in medium bathing aortas from rats fed either normal potassium or high potassium diets. Five-week-old SHRSP were fed 6% high NaCl diets containing either normal (0.5%) potassium (11 rats) or high (2.1%) potassium (14 rats) for 7 weeks. Aortas were freshly excised and perfused for 3 hours with tissue culture medium at ordinary arterial pressures. TGF-beta-like activity in the acid-activated perfusing medium was assessed using the growth inhibitory action on mink lung cells. Growth inhibition was assessed by [3H]thymidine incorporation. In the medium perfusing the outside of the aorta, the growth inhibitory rates were 2.5 times higher in high potassium SHRSP than in normal potassium SHRSP (-49% versus -20%, p less than 0.03). Antibodies to TGF-beta 1 and TGF-beta 2 were added to other aliquots and did not alter the results whatsoever. Thus, the difference in growth inhibition was not due to differences in TGF-beta. The high potassium aortas released 2.5 times more growth-inhibiting agents than the normal potassium aortas. The same pattern of growth inhibition was also seen using vascular smooth muscle cells rather than mink lung cells (r = +0.818, p less than 0.001, n = 13). The increased growth inhibition of high potassium aortas was not due to an increased release of heparin.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
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PMID:High potassium diets greatly increase growth-inhibiting agents in aortas of hypertensive rats. 159 76

Most large studies of the blood parameters that act as risk factors for myocardial infarction, stroke and atherosclerosis have identified elevated circulating levels of lipoprotein(a) as an important risk factor. Lipoprotein(a) consists of an LDL particle that is covalently bound to the distinguishing protein component apolipoprotein(a). Ever since apolipoprotein(a) was cloned in 1987 and the marked sequence homology to plasminogen was noted, mechanisms for the atherogenic activity of lipoprotein(a), based on the competitive inhibition of plasminogen activity, have been proposed. However, with the availability of transgenic mice expressing both human apolipoprotein(a) and lipoprotein(a), recent studies have demonstrated that lipoprotein(a) acts to inhibit plasminogen activation in vivo. One consequence of this is reduced activation of the cytokine transforming growth factor-beta, an important regulator of vessel wall structure.
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PMID:Transforming growth factor-beta: the key to understanding lipoprotein(a)? 777 72

1. This study was undertaken to determine whether the AT1 receptor directly contributes to hypertension-induced cardiac hypertrophy and gene expressions. 2. Stroke-prone spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHRSP) were given orally an AT1, receptor antagonist (losartan, 30 mg kg-1 day-1), an angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitor (enalapril 10 mg kg-1 day-1), a dihydropyridine calcium channel antagonist (amlodipine, 5 mg kg-1 day-1), or vehicle (control), for 8 weeks (from 16 to 24 weeks of age). The effects of each drug were compared on ventricular weight and mRNA levels for myocardial phenotype- and fibrosis-related genes. 3. Left ventricular hypertrophy of SHRSP was accompanied by the increase in mRNA levels for two foetal phenotypes of contractile proteins (skeletal alpha-actin and beta-myosin heavy chain (beta-MHC)), atrial natriuretic polypeptide (ANP), transforming growth factor-beta-1 (TGF-beta 1) and collagen, and a decrease in mRNA levels for an adult phenotype of contractile protein (alpha-MHC). Thus, the left ventricle of SHRSP was characterized by myocardial transition from an adult to a foetal phenotype and interstitial fibrosis at the molecular level. 4. Although losartan, enalapril and amlodipine lowered blood pressure of SHRSP to a comparable degree throughout the treatment, losartan caused regression of left ventricular hypertrophy of SHRSP to a greater extent than amlodipine (P < 0.01). 5. Losartan significantly decreased mRNA levels for skeletal alpha-actin, ANP, TGF-beta 1 and collagen types I, III and IV and increased alpha-MHC mRNA in the left ventricle of SHRSP. Amlodipine did not alter left ventricular ANP, alpha-MHC and collagen types I and IV mRNA levels of SHRSP. 6. The effects of enalapril on left ventricular hypertrophy and gene expressions of SHRSP were similar to those of losartan, except for the lack of inhibition of collagen type I expression by enalapril. 7. Unlike the hypertrophied left ventricle, there was no significant difference between losartan and amlodipine in the effects on non-hypertrophied right ventricular gene expressions of SHRSP. 8. Our results show that hypertension causes not only left ventricular hypertrophy but also molecular transition of myocardium to a foetal phenotype and interstitial fibrosis-related molecular changes. These hypertension-induced left ventricular molecular changes may be at least in part mediated by the direct action of local angiotensin II via the AT1, receptor.
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PMID:Effects of an AT1 receptor antagonist, an ACE inhibitor and a calcium channel antagonist on cardiac gene expressions in hypertensive rats. 876 77

Perivascular accumulation of mononuclear cells (MNCs) in the central nervous system (CNS) and high levels of myelin autoantigen-reactive T cells in blood and further enriched in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) are characteristic for multiple sclerosis (MS) and suggest a role for immunoregulatory cytokines in MS pathogenesis. The difficulties inherent to measurements of cytokine concentrations in body fluids have been partly overcome by adopting techniques allowing cytokine determinations on cellular level. MS is associated with the parallel up-regulation of proinflammatory [interferon-gamma (IFN-gamma), tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha), lymphotoxin-alpha, and interleukin (IL)-12] and immune response-down-regulating [transforming growth factor-beta (TGF-beta), IL-10] cytokines systemically. A preferential up-modulation of TNF-alpha and lymphotoxin-alpha is observed in clinical exacerbations and of TGF-beta and IL-10 in remissions. The B cell-stimulating IL-4 and IL-6 are also up-regulated in MS, as is the cytolysis-promoting perforin. Cytokine production is elevated to an even higher degree in the CSF than systemically, underlining the autonomy of the immune responses in the CSF. All cytokine abnormalities are demonstrable already in very early MS, manifested by acute unilateral optic neuritis associated with more than two MS-like lesions on brain magnetic resonance imaging and oligoclonal IgG bands in CSF. The cytokine abnormalities hitherto observed are not MS specific, because they can be found in other inflammatory CNS diseases, e.g., aseptic meningitis and even noninflammatory neurological diseases like stroke. The influence on cytokine profiles, e.g., suppressing proinflammatory cytokines and promoting TGF-beta and IL-10, could be an important way to identify new and promising treatments of MS.
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PMID:Review: cytokines and the pathogenesis of multiple sclerosis. 887 92

The renin-angiotensin system (RAS) has been implicated in the development of hypertensive glomerulosclerosis. However, there are no experimental findings clearly demonstrating activation of glomerular RAS in hypertensive nephropathy. Using the stroke-prone spontaneously hypertensive rat (SHRSP) as an animal model of hypertensive glomerulosclerosis, we examined the relationship between the sequential changes in urinary albumin excretion (UAE), renal morphology, and glomerular mRNA expression for transforming growth factor-beta (TGF-beta) and fibronectin (FN) and glomerular mRNA levels for RAS components, and determined the effects of the angiotensin II (Ang II) type 1 (AT-1) receptor antagonist (candesartan) and equihypotensive hydralazine on these parameters. In SHRSP, UAE was normal at nine weeks of age and increased by 12 weeks. Plasma renin activity, plasma Ang II concentration, and angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE) activity were not higher in 9- and 12-week-old SHRSP than in WKY. RNase protection assay revealed higher glomerular mRNA levels for angiotensinogen, ACE, and AT-1a and AT-1b receptors in 9-, 12-, and 14-week-old SHRSP than in WKY. The glomerular mRNA levels for TGF-beta and FN in SHRSP were increased from nine weeks of age. SHRSP had a greater glomerulosclerosis index (GSI) at 24 weeks of age than did WKY. Administration of candesartan for two weeks, but not of hydralazine, markedly reduced UAE and normalized mRNA levels for TGF-beta, FN, and RAS components. Candesartan administration for 12 weeks virtually prevented the progression of glomerulosclerosis in rats. We conclude that in SHRSP, RAS activation and increased sensitivity to Ang II in glomeruli play important roles in the progression of glomerulosclerosis.
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PMID:Candesartan prevents the progression of glomerulosclerosis in genetic hypertensive rats. 940 67

Cytokines have been recognized to play an important role both in normal development of the brain, when they act as neurotrophic factors, as well as following injury. While both the cytokines and their receptors are synthesized and expressed in the brain normally (albeit at low levels), it has become clear that elevated levels are associated with many neurological disorders. In this review, we have chosen to present the data for only a few of the cytokines, including interleukin-1beta, interleukin-3, interleukin-6, interferon-gamma, transforming growth factor-beta, and tumor necrosis factor-alpha. Data are presented that suggest roles they may play in human disorders, including stroke, multiple sclerosis, Alzheimer's disease, and several psychiatric disorders. The results in human disease are compared with results obtained in a variety of transgenic animal models. The mouse models have very different disorders depending on whether a cytokine is overexpressed either peripherally or in either astrocytes or neurons. The potential significance of this to the understanding of human disease is discussed.
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PMID:Involvement of cytokines in normal CNS development and neurological diseases: recent progress and perspectives. 955 25

Cytokines and chemokines have been implicated in contributing to the initiation, propagation and regulation of immune and inflammatory responses. Also, these soluble mediators have important roles in contributing to a wide array of neurological diseases such as multiple sclerosis, AIDS Dementia Complex, stroke and Alzheimer's disease. Cytokines and chemokines are synthesized within the central nervous system by glial cells and neurons, and have modulatory functions on these same cells via interactions with specific cell-surface receptors. In this article, I will discuss the ability of glial cells and neurons to both respond to, and synthesize, a variety of cytokines. The emphasize will be on three select cytokines; interferon-gamma (IFN-gamma), a cytokine with predominantly proinflammatory effects; interleukin-6 (IL-6), a cytokine with both pro- and anti-inflammatory properties; and transforming growth factor-beta (TGF-beta), a cytokine with predominantly immunosuppressive actions. The significance of these cytokines to neurological diseases with an immunological component will be discussed.
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PMID:Cytokine actions in the central nervous system. 991 24

We have previously demonstrated that angiotensin II (Ang II) contributes to the increase in aortic transforming growth factor-beta(1) (TGF-beta(1)) mRNA levels in hypertensive rats. However, the molecular mechanism whereby Ang II promotes TGF-beta(1) expression in vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs) is poorly understood. In this study, we examined the role of extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) in Ang II-mediated TGF-beta(1) expression in VSMCs and the role of Ang II in aortic ERK activity of stroke-prone spontaneously hypertensive rats. Treatment of quiescent VSMCs with 100 nmol/L Ang II induced rapid phosphorylation and activation of ERK1 and ERK2 with a peak at 5 minutes followed by an increase in activator protein-1 (AP-1) DNA binding activity, as shown by gel mobility shift assay. An increase in TGF-beta(1) mRNA was shown by Northern blot analysis. Treatment of VSMCs with PD98059, a specific inhibitor of the ERK pathway, attenuated both the activation of AP-1 and the increase in TGF-beta(1) mRNA induced by Ang II. Inhibition of Ang II-induced AP-1 activation with c-fos antisense oligodeoxynucleotide led to a significant reduction of TGF-beta(1) mRNA in VSMCs. Furthermore, in vivo treatment of stroke-prone spontaneously hypertensive rats with losartan, an Ang II type 1 receptor antagonist, decreased aortic ERK activity. Thus, we show that ERK, through AP-1 activation, is involved in Ang II-induced TGF-beta(1) mRNA expression in VSMCs and suggest that ERK may participate in vascular remodeling of hypertension. However, it remains to be determined whether the increase in TGF-beta(1) mRNA leads to the increase in its active protein.
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PMID:Contribution of extracellular signal-regulated kinase to angiotensin II-induced transforming growth factor-beta1 expression in vascular smooth muscle cells. 1040 35

Hypertension, a remediable risk factor for stroke, cardiovascular disease, and renal failure, affects 50 million individuals in the United States alone. African Americans (blacks) have a higher incidence and prevalence of hypertension and hypertension-associated target organ damage compared with Caucasian Americans (whites). Herein, we explored the hypotheses that transforming growth factor-beta(1) (TGF-beta(1)) is hyperexpressed in hypertensives compared with normotensives and that TGF-beta(1) overexpression is more frequent in blacks compared with whites. These hypotheses were stimulated by our recent demonstration that TGF-beta(1) is hyperexpressed in blacks with end-stage renal disease compared with white end-stage renal disease patients and by the biological attributes of TGF-beta(1), which include induction of endothelin-1 expression, stimulation of renin release, and promotion of vascular and renal disease when TGF-beta(1) is produced in excess. TGF-beta(1) profiles were determined in black and white hypertensive subjects and normotensive controls and included circulating protein concentrations, mRNA steady-state levels, and codon 10 genotype. Our investigation demonstrated that TGF-beta(1) protein levels are highest in black hypertensives, and TGF-beta(1) protein as well as TGF-beta(1) mRNA levels are higher in hypertensives compared with normotensives. The proline allele at codon 10 (Pro(10)) was more frequent in blacks compared with whites, and its presence was associated with higher levels of TGF-beta(1) mRNA and protein. Our findings support the idea that TGF-beta(1) hyperexpression is a risk factor for hypertension and hypertensive complications and provides a mechanism for the excess burden of hypertension in blacks.
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PMID:Transforming growth factor-beta 1 hyperexpression in African-American hypertensives: A novel mediator of hypertension and/or target organ damage. 1072 60

Exogenous application of neurotrophic growth factors has emerged as a new and particularly promising approach not only to promote functional recovery after acute brain injury but also to protect neurons against the immediate effect of the injury. Among the various growth factors and cytokines studied so far, the neuroprotective and neurotrophic profile of basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF) is the best documented. Using an animal model of acute excitotoxic brain injury, we report here that the neuroprotective action of bFGF, which is now being tested in stroke patients, depends on the induction of activin A, a member of the transforming growth factor-beta superfamily. Our evidence for this previously unknown mechanism of action of bFGF is that bFGF strongly enhanced lesion-associated induction of activin A; in the presence of the activin-neutralizing protein follistatin, bFGF was no longer capable of rescuing neurons from excitotoxic death; and recombinant activin A exerted a neuroprotective effect by itself. Our data indicate that the development of substances influencing activin expression or receptor binding should offer new ways to fight neuronal loss in ischemic and traumatic brain injury.
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PMID:Induction of activin A is essential for the neuroprotective action of basic fibroblast growth factor in vivo. 1088 14


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