Letter to the editor: 'Looking for molecular mechanisms underlying aberrant elastin deposition in hypertension'

摘要

to the editor: Elastic fibers may be key elements in the pathophysiology of hypertensive vascular remodeling. In addition to the well-known adverse effects of hypertension on the elastic fiber system, recent studies indicate that aberrant elastin deposition may precede the development of hypertension. In the December 2008 issue of American Journal of Physiology-Heart and Circulatory Physiology, Arribas and cowork-ers (1) demonstrated the deposition of excessive and aberrant elastin before the development of systemic hypertension in spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHRs). In neonatal SHRs, the isolated elastin scaffold of the aorta exhibited an increased relative weight and stiffness, as well as the presence of peculiar trabeculae inside the fenestrae that reduced their size. The authors concluded from their data that the aberrant elastin deposited in the SHR aorta alters the mechanical properties leading to compromised vessel expansion, compromised he-modynamic function, and finally to the development of hypertension. Since the abnormal organization does not occur in nongenetic models of hypertension, the authors speculate that a unique genetic program of SHRs triggers an early aberrant assembly of elastic lamellae and/or a lack of normal elastin remodeling.