scholarly journals Gender, Sex Hormones, and Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension

2011 ◽  
Vol 10 (3) ◽  
pp. 160-166 ◽  
Author(s):  
Eric D. Austin

Pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) is a progressive disease characterized by pulmonary vascular remodeling of the distal pulmonary vasculature, ultimately leading to destruction and loss of the smallest pulmonary arteries.1 The ensuing syndrome of PAH is clinically characterized by reduced pulmonary arterial circulatory flow, resulting in increased pulmonary vascular resistance, which ultimately results in failure of the right heart.2 In both children and adults, PAH presents as a primary disease or in association with a diverse range of diseases such as connective tissue diseases, portal hypertension, and congenital heart disease.3 Nearly all forms of World Health Organization (WHO) Group 1 PAH demonstrate a skewed gender ratio with significantly more females diagnosed with PAH than males.4–6 While the mechanistic details behind the female predominance remain unclear, this gender discrepancy may represent an opportunity for advanced biologic understanding and future therapeutic development. This article will briefly discuss the intersection of human, in vitro, and animal studies of PAH, and highlight the conflicting data that others have discussed and elegantly elaborated upon as the “estrogen paradox” in PAH.7–9

Circulation ◽  
2008 ◽  
Vol 118 (suppl_18) ◽  
Author(s):  
Gopinath Sutendra ◽  
Sebastien Bonnet ◽  
Paulette Wright ◽  
Peter Dromparis ◽  
Alois Haromy ◽  
...  

Nogo was first identified as an inhibitor of neuronal axonal regeneration. Recently, Nogo-B was implicated in the proliferative and anti-apoptotic remodeling in systemic arteries; reduced Nogo-B expression was seen in remodeled mouse femoral arteries following injury. Pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) is also characterized by proliferative/anti-apoptotic remodeling in pulmonary arteries (PA), sparing systemic vessels. PAH PA smooth muscle cells (PASMC) are characterized by mitochondrial hyperpolarization (increased ΔΨm), decreased production of reactive oxygen species (ROS) (suppressing mitochondria-dependent apoptosis), down-regulation of Kv1.5 and activation of the transcription factor NFAT (promoting contraction and proliferation). We found that in contrast to systemic vessels, Nogo-B expression is significantly increased in vivo and in vitro in PAs and PASMCs from patients (n=6) and mice (n=42) with PAH, compared to normals. We hypothesized that Nogo is involved in the pathogenesis of PAH . Nogo −/− mice (n=7) had a normal phenotype and, in contrast to Nogo +/+ , did not develop chronic hypoxia (CH)-induced PAH assessed invasively (catheterization, RV/LV+Septum) and non-invasively (pulmonary artery acceleration time and treadmill performance) (n=7, Table ). CH- Nogo +/+ PASMC had the expected increase in ΔΨm (measured by TMRM), decreased ROS (MitoSOX), increased [Ca ++ ] i (FLUO3), decreased Kv1.5 (immunohistochemistry) and NFAT activation (nuclear translocation). None of these changes occurred in CH- Nogo −/− PASMC while all were induced in normoxic Nogo +/+ PASMC by adenoviral over-expression of Nogo-B . Heterozygote CH- Nogo +/− (n=7) values were between Nogo −/− and Nogo +/+ suggesting a gene dose-dependent effect. Nogo is over-expressed in human and rodent PAH and induces critical features of the PAH phenotype. Nogo targeting might represent a novel and selective therapeutic strategy for PAH. Table


2020 ◽  
pp. 1902061
Author(s):  
David Macias ◽  
Stephen Moore ◽  
Alexi Crosby ◽  
Mark Southwood ◽  
Xinlin Du ◽  
...  

Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension (PAH) is a destructive disease of the pulmonary vasculature often leading to right heart failure and death. Current therapeutic intervention strategies only slow disease progression. The role of aberrant HIF2α stability and function in the initiation and development of pulmonary hypertension (PH) has been an area of intense interest for nearly two decades.Here we determine the effect of a novel HIF2α inhibitor (PT2567) on PH disease initiation and progression, using two pre-clinical models of PH. Haemodynamic measurements were performed followed by collection of heart, lung and blood for pathological, gene expression and biochemical analysis. Blood outgrowth endothelial cells from IPAH patients were used to determine the impact of HIF2α-inhibition on endothelial function.Global inhibition of HIF2a reduced pulmonary vascular haemodynamics and pulmonary vascular remodelling in both su5416/hypoxia prevention and intervention models. PT2567 intervention reduced the expression of PH associated target genes in both lung and cardiac tissues and restored plasma nitrite concentration. Treatment of monocrotaline exposed rodents with PT2567 reduced the impact on cardiovascular haemodynamics and promoted a survival advantage. In vitro, loss of HIF2α signalling in human pulmonary arterial endothelial cells suppresses target genes associated with inflammation, and PT2567 reduced the hyper-proliferative phenotype and over-active arginase activity in blood outgrowth endothelial cells from IPAH patients. These data suggest that targeting HIF2α hetero-dimerisation with an orally bioavailable compound could offer a new therapeutic approach for PAH. Future studies are required to determine the role of HIF in the heterogeneous PAH population.


Blood ◽  
2011 ◽  
Vol 117 (13) ◽  
pp. 3485-3493 ◽  
Author(s):  
Samar Farha ◽  
Kewal Asosingh ◽  
Weiling Xu ◽  
Jacqueline Sharp ◽  
Deepa George ◽  
...  

AbstractPulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) is a proliferative vasculopathy characterized by high circulating CD34+CD133+ proangiogenic progenitors, and endothelial cells that have pathologic expression of hypoxia-inducible factor 1 α (HIF-1α). Here, CD34+CD133+ progenitor cell numbers are shown to be higher in PAH bone marrow, blood, and pulmonary arteries than in healthy controls. The HIF-inducible myeloid-activating factors erythropoietin, stem cell factor (SCF), and hepatocyte growth factor (HGF) are also present at higher than normal levels in PAH blood, and related to disease severity. Primary endothelial cells harvested from human PAH lungs produce greater HGF and progenitor recruitment factor stromal-derived factor 1 α (SDF-1α) than control lung endothelial cells, and thus may contribute to bone marrow activation. Even though PAH patients had normal numbers of circulating blood elements, hematopoietic alterations in myeloid and erythroid lineages and reticulin fibrosis identified a subclinical myeloproliferative process. Unexpectedly, evaluation of bone marrow progenitors and reticulin in nonaffected family members of patients with familial PAH revealed similar myeloid abnormalities. Altogether, the results show that PAH is linked to myeloid abnormalities, some of which may be related to increased production of HIF-inducible factors by diseased pulmonary vasculature, but findings in nonaffected family suggest myeloid abnormalities may be intrinsic to the disease process.


Circulation ◽  
2007 ◽  
Vol 116 (suppl_16) ◽  
Author(s):  
Satoshi Kimura ◽  
Kensuke Egashira ◽  
Chen Ling ◽  
Hiroyuki Tsujimoto ◽  
Kaori Hara ◽  
...  

Background: Inflammatory mechanisms are implicated in the pathogenesis of pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH), and thus can be a promising therapeutic target of the devastating disease. Nuclear factor-κB (NF-κB) is a redox-sensitive transcription factor that controls expression of important inflammatory cytokines. However, no prior study addressed the role of NF-κB in PAH. We have developed nanotechnology-based drug delivery system (Nano-DDS) to the lung using intratracheal injection of bioabsorbable polymeric PLGA nanoparticle (NP, a mean diameter of 50 nm) for clinical application. Hypothesis: Blockade of NF-κB by Nano-DDS of NF-κB decoy to the lung ameliorates monocrotaline (MCT)-induced PAH. Methods and Results: [Immunohistochemical studies in human samples from autopsy] Immunohistochemical study using an antibody against activated form (α-p65) showed that activation of NF-κB was noted in the alveolar macrophage and pulmonary vasculature with medial hypertrophy from lung cross-sections from patients with severe PAH. These pathologic changes were associated with increased staining of IL-6 and MCP-1. [Experimental animal studies] Single intratracheal injection of NP incorporated with fluorescence labeled NF-κB decoy in rats resulted in sustained intracellular delivery into macrophages and pulmonary vasculature until 7 days. After MCT injection, rats were divided into no treatment (No Tx) group, and those received single intratracheal decoy alone (50 μg), blank NPs alone, or decoy NP (n=6 – 8, each). No Tx group developed significant PAH, pulmonary arterial remodeling, and increased infiltration of macrophages 3 weeks after MCT injection. These pathologic changes were ameliorated by treatment with decoy NP, but not with decoy only or blank NP only. Increased activity of NF-κB in alveolar macrophages in No Tx group was attenuated by intratracheal decoy NP, but not by decoy only or blank NP only. Conclusions: We have developed a novel Nano-DDS of NF-κB decoy into the lung using bioabsorbable NP, and demonstrated its therapeutic benefit associated with anti-inflammatory effects in MCT-induced PAH. This study provides an innovative future direction of less invasive and dependable Nano-DDS for patients with severe PAH.


2017 ◽  
Vol 8 (2-3) ◽  
pp. 47-64 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jessica B. Badlam ◽  
Todd M. Bull

Pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) is a chronic disease that results in narrowing of the small pre-capillary pulmonary arteries leading to elevation of pulmonary artery pressure and pulmonary vascular resistance, subsequent right ventricular failure, and if unchecked, death. Advances in the treatment of PAH over the last two decades have markedly improved survival. These improvements reflect a combination of changes in treatments, improved patient care strategies, and varying disease phenotypes in the PAH population. Currently approved therapies for PAH are directed at the recognized abnormalities within the pulmonary vasculature and include endothelin receptor antagonists, phosphodiesterase-5 inhibitors, soluble guanylate cyclase stimulators, and prostacyclin pathway agents. Most of these drugs have been approved on the basis of short-term trials that mainly demonstrated improvements in exercise capacity. More recently, long-term, event-driven trials of novel drugs have been performed, demonstrating new efficacy parameters. There have also been exciting advances in the understanding of right heart failure pathophysiology in PAH that have the potential to inspire the development of right ventricular targeted therapy and continued discoveries in the heterogeneity of disease and response to treatment has great potential for developing more ‘personalized’ therapeutic options. In this article, we review the current available data regarding the management of PAH, with an emphasis on the pharmacologic therapies and discussion of novel therapeutic directions for the treatment of this fatal disease.


Cells ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (3) ◽  
pp. 638
Author(s):  
Shahood Fazal ◽  
Malik Bisserier ◽  
Lahouaria Hadri

Pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) is a rare and chronic lung disease characterized by progressive occlusion of the small pulmonary arteries, which is associated with structural and functional alteration of the smooth muscle cells and endothelial cells within the pulmonary vasculature. Excessive vascular remodeling is, in part, responsible for high pulmonary vascular resistance and the mean pulmonary arterial pressure, increasing the transpulmonary gradient and the right ventricular “pressure overload”, which may result in right ventricular (RV) dysfunction and failure. Current technological advances in multi-omics approaches, high-throughput sequencing, and computational methods have provided valuable tools in molecular profiling and led to the identification of numerous genetic variants in PAH patients. In this review, we summarized the pathogenesis, classification, and current treatments of the PAH disease. Additionally, we outlined the latest next-generation sequencing technologies and the consequences of common genetic variants underlying PAH susceptibility and disease progression. Finally, we discuss the importance of molecular genetic testing for precision medicine in PAH and the future of genomic medicines, including gene-editing technologies and gene therapies, as emerging alternative approaches to overcome genetic disorders in PAH.


Circulation ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 142 (Suppl_3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Yann Grobs ◽  
Charlotte romanet ◽  
Valerie Nadeau ◽  
Junichi Omura ◽  
Mark Orcholski ◽  
...  

Like cancer, pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) is characterized by exaggerated proliferation and resistance to apoptosis related to metabolic alterations (Warburg effect) of pulmonary smooth muscle cells (PASMCs). These anomalies result in a progressive narrowing of the pulmonary arteries, increasing pulmonary resistance and leading to right heart failure and premature death. In cancer cells, unphosphorylated and nuclear FOXO3 has been extensively studied as a crucial protein that functions as a tumor suppressor by regulating expression of genes involved in apoptosis and cell cycle arrest. These functions combined with other FOXO3 attributes, including its key role in communicating mitochondrial-nuclear signals, make the FOXO3 a suitable candidate for controlling the cancer-like phenotype of PAH-PASMCs. Interestingly, AKT and AMPK known to be implicated in PAH exert antagonistic effects on FOXO3; AKT promoting its nuclear exclusion while AMPK favors its nuclear and mitochondrial accumulation. The thus made the hypothesis that FOXO3’s nuclear exclusion (secondary to AKT/AMPK imbalance) promotes metabolic reprogramming towards glycolysis leading to enhanced proliferation/resistance to apoptosis of PAH-PASMCs and vascular remodeling. Using Western blot and immunofluorescence in isolated PASMCs from both PAH and control patients (n=10), we found that nuclear and mitochondrial exclusion of FOXO3 due to its phosphorylation is a feature of PAH-PASMCs. In vitro, we demonstrated that nuclear localization of FOXO3 using an adenovirus expressing a constitutively active, non-phosphorylable form of FOXO3 or trifluoperazine (TFP) resulted in reduced PAH-PASMC proliferation (Ki67 labeling, p<0,0005) and resistance to apoptosis (Annexin V assay, p<0,05). These effects were accompanied by increased expression of P27 and SOD2 and diminished expression of Survivin (p<0,05). In vivo, we showed that FOXO3 activation using TPF improved established PAH in the monocrotaline rats (reduced RVSP and increased Sv and CO, by right catheterization, p<0,01, n=29) without any sign of toxicity. We showed that FOXO3 is implicated in pulmonary vascular remodeling. Pharmacological activation of FOXO3 may represent a novel avenue to improve PAH.


2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
Matthew Moll ◽  
Mayank Sardana ◽  
Harrison W. Farber

This review covers the diseases that affect the pulmonary vasculature directly. These conditions include pulmonary hypertension; pulmonary arterial hypertension; chronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension; pulmonary hypertension attributed to left heart disease, lung disease and/or hypoxemia, and other disorders; cor pulmonale; pulmonary atriovenous malformations; and pulmonary aneurysms. Figures show changes in the pulmonary vasculature in pulmonary hypertension, pathways involved in the development of pulmonary hypertension, general guidelines for the evaluation of suspected pulmonary hypertension, enlarged proximal pulmonary arteries with pruning of distal pulmonary vasculature (typical of advanced pulmonary arterial hypertension), the remodeling of the heart and continuous-wave Doppler study results observed with chronic pulmonary hypertension, ventilation and perfusion scans of  the lungs with results typical of chronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension, and a general approach to the treatment of patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension. Tables list the revised nomenclature and classification of pulmonary hypertension, the World Health Organization classification of functional capacity in patients with pulmonary hypertension, advanced vascular medications for pulmonary artery hypertension, and perioperative management of pulmonary arterial hypertension. This review contains 8 highly rendered figures, 4 tables, and 118 references.


Author(s):  
Byron A. Zambrano ◽  
Nathan McLean ◽  
Xiaodan Zhao ◽  
Ju-Le Tan ◽  
Liang Zhong ◽  
...  

Vascular wall stiffness and hemodynamic parameters are potential biomechanical markers for detecting pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH). Previous computational analyses, however, have not considered the interaction between blood flow and wall deformation. Here, we applied an established computational framework that utilizes patient-specific measurements of hemodynamics and wall deformation to analyze the coupled fluid–vessel wall interaction in the proximal pulmonary arteries (PA) of six PAH patients and five control subjects. Specifically, we quantified the linearized stiffness (E), relative area change (RAC), diastolic diameter (D), regurgitant flow, and time-averaged wall shear stress (TAWSS) of the proximal PA, as well as the total arterial resistance (Rt) and compliance (Ct) at the distal pulmonary vasculature. Results found that the average proximal PA was stiffer [median: 297 kPa, interquartile range (IQR): 202 kPa vs. median: 75 kPa, IQR: 5 kPa; P = 0.007] with a larger diameter (median: 32 mm, IQR: 5.25 mm vs. median: 25 mm, IQR: 2 mm; P = 0.015) and a reduced RAC (median: 0.22, IQR: 0.10 vs. median: 0.42, IQR: 0.04; P = 0.004) in PAH compared to our control group. Also, higher total resistance (Rt; median: 6.89 mmHg × min/l, IQR: 2.16 mmHg × min/l vs. median: 3.99 mmHg × min/l, IQR: 1.15 mmHg × min/l; P = 0.002) and lower total compliance (Ct; median: 0.13 ml/mmHg, IQR: 0.15 ml/mmHg vs. median: 0.85 ml/mmHg, IQR: 0.51 ml/mmHg; P = 0.041) were observed in the PAH group. Furthermore, lower TAWSS values were seen at the main PA arteries (MPAs) of PAH patients (median: 0.81 Pa, IQR: 0.47 Pa vs. median: 1.56 Pa, IQR: 0.89 Pa; P = 0.026) compared to controls. Correlation analysis within the PAH group found that E was directly correlated to the PA regurgitant flow (r = 0.84, P = 0.018) and inversely related to TAWSS (r = −0.72, P = 0.051). Results suggest that the estimated elastic modulus E may be closely related to PAH hemodynamic changes in pulmonary arteries.


Author(s):  
Ariel Wang ◽  
Daniela Valdez-Jasso

AbstractPulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) is a vasculopathy characterized by sustained elevated pulmonary arterial pressures in which the pulmonary vasculature undergoes significant structural and functional remodeling. To better understand disease mechanisms, in this review article we highlight recent insights into the regulation of pulmonary arterial cells by mechanical cues associated with PAH. Specifically, the mechanobiology of pulmonary arterial endothelial cells (PAECs), smooth muscle cells (PASMCs) and adventitial fibroblasts (PAAFs) has been investigated in vivo, in vitro, and in silico. Increased pulmonary arterial pressure increases vessel wall stress and strain and endothelial fluid shear stress. These mechanical cues promote vasoconstriction and fibrosis that contribute further to hypertension and alter the mechanical milieu and regulation of pulmonary arterial cells.


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