OBJECTIVE: Leptin promotes atherosclerosis and vessel wall remodeling. As abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) formation involves tissue remodeling, we hypothesized that local leptin synthesis initiates and promotes this process. METHODS AND RESULTS: Human …

Ryanodine receptor type 2 (RyR-2) mediates Ca(2+) release from sarcoplasmic reticulum and contributes to myocardial contractile function. However, the role of RyR-2 in the development of cardiac hypertrophy is not completely understood. Here, mice with or …

BACKGROUND: Cardiac hypertrophy involves growth responses to a variety of stimuli triggered by increased workload. It is an independent risk factor for heart failure and sudden death. Mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) plays a key role in cellular …

RATIONALE: Neurofibromatosis type 1 (NF1) is a common autosomal dominant disorder with a broad array of clinical manifestations, including benign and malignant tumors, and characteristic cutaneous findings. NF1 patients also have an increased incidence of …

Left ventricular hypertrophy (LVH), a risk factor for cardiovascular morbidity and mortality, is commonly caused by essential hypertension. Three geometric patterns of LVH can be induced by hypertension: concentric remodeling, concentric hypertrophy, and …

In response to chronic hypertension, the heart compensates by hypertrophic growth, which frequently progresses to heart failure. Although intracellular calcium (Ca(2+)) has a central role in hypertrophic signaling pathways, the Ca(2+) source for …

The creatine kinase (CK) energy transport and buffering system supports cardiac function at times of high demand and is impaired in the failing heart. Mice deficient in muscle- and mitochondrial-CK (M/Mt-CK(-/-)) have previously been described, but …

BACKGROUND: Ginseng is a medicinal plant used widely in Asia that has gained popularity in the West during the past decade. Increasing evidence suggests a therapeutic role for ginseng in the cardiovascular system. The pharmacological properties of ginseng …

AIMS: We have previously shown that cardiac-specific inhibition of NF-kappaB attenuates angiotensin II (AngII)-induced left ventricular (LV) hypertrophy in vivo. We now tested whether NF-kappaB inhibition is able to block LV remodelling upon chronic …

AlphaB-crystallin (CryAB) is the most abundant small heat shock protein (HSP) constitutively expressed in cardiomyocytes. Gain- and loss-of-function studies demonstrated that CryAB can protect against myocardial ischemia/reperfusion injury. However, the …