scholarly journals Physiological and Cellular Functions of Vitamin K on Cardiovascular Function

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Meneerah A. Aljafary ◽  
Hussah Alshwyeh ◽  
Nada Alahmadi ◽  
Adeeb Shehzad ◽  
Huseyin Tombuloglu ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Cardiovascular Diseases ◽  
Vitamin K ◽  
Vascular System ◽  
Vascular Endothelial Cells ◽  
Cell Types ◽  
Negative Influence ◽  
The Body ◽  
Dietary Vitamin ◽  
Primary Role ◽  
Cellular Functions

This chapter reviews the physiological and cellular functions of vitamin K in the cardiovascular system based on the latest pre-clinical and clinical evidence. Vitamin K belongs to a family of structurally similar fat-soluble vitamins, actively required by the body for the synthesis of essential proteins as well as regulate blood clotting, bone metabolism and calcium level. The authors emphasize the quintessential association between dietary vitamin K2 and cardiovascular diseases shown in various studies. The association, through the vitamin K - dependent hormones, plays a primary role in regulating calcification of different cell types, especially their role in calcification of the vascular endothelial cells. The consequences of vitamin K deficiency in the vascular system are unfavorable, shown in various clinical studies on statins - well-known inhibitors of vitamin K production in the body. New clinical insights suggest that vitamin K levels in the body and its dietary supplementation play a crucial role in cardiovascular disease prevention. There is negative influence of these antagonist’s pate in vascular composition and functions. Therefore, there is a need for prospective studies to make more in-depth exploration and increase the current understanding of this critical relationship to confidently apply such knowledge to prevent cardiovascular diseases and improve their outcomes.

scholarly journals Analyses of the pericyte transcriptome in ischemic skeletal muscles

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Yuan-chi Teng ◽  
Alfredo Leonardo Porfírio-Sousa ◽  
Giulia Magri Ribeiro ◽  
Marcela Corso Arend ◽  
Lindolfo da Silva Meirelles ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Endothelial Cells ◽  
Vascular Endothelial Cells ◽  
Expression Profiles ◽  
Gene Expression Profiles ◽  
Limb Ischemia ◽  
Inflammatory Cells ◽  
Cell Types ◽  
Arterial Disease ◽  
The Body ◽  
Time Points

Abstract Background Peripheral arterial disease (PAD) affects millions of people and compromises quality of life. Critical limb ischemia (CLI), which is the most advanced stage of PAD, can cause nonhealing ulcers and strong chronic pain, and it shortens the patients’ life expectancy. Cell-based angiogenic therapies are becoming a real therapeutic approach to treat CLI. Pericytes are cells that surround vascular endothelial cells to reinforce vessel integrity and regulate local blood pressure and metabolism. In the past decade, researchers also found that pericytes may function as stem or progenitor cells in the body, showing the potential to differentiate into several cell types. We investigated the gene expression profiles of pericytes during the early stages of limb ischemia, as well as the alterations in pericyte subpopulations to better understand the behavior of pericytes under ischemic conditions. Methods In this study, we used a hindlimb ischemia model to mimic CLI in C57/BL6 mice and explore the role of pericytes in regeneration. To this end, muscle pericytes were isolated at different time points after the induction of ischemia. The phenotypes and transcriptomic profiles of the pericytes isolated at these discrete time points were assessed using flow cytometry and RNA sequencing. Results Ischemia triggered proliferation and migration and upregulated the expression of myogenesis-related transcripts in pericytes. Furthermore, the transcriptomic analysis also revealed that pericytes induce or upregulate the expression of a number of cytokines with effects on endothelial cells, leukocyte chemoattraction, or the activation of inflammatory cells. Conclusions Our findings provide a database that will improve our understanding of skeletal muscle pericyte biology under ischemic conditions, which may be useful for the development of novel pericyte-based cell and gene therapies.

scholarly journals Macrophages as Emerging Key Players in Mitochondrial Transfers

2021 ◽  
Vol 9 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yidan Pang ◽  
Changqing Zhang ◽  
Junjie Gao
Keyword(s):  
Cardiovascular Diseases ◽  
Metabolic Regulation ◽  
Inflammatory Diseases ◽  
Negative Influence ◽  
Immune Defense ◽  
The Body ◽  
Key Players ◽  
Current Therapies ◽  
Obesity And Cancer ◽  
Host Tissues

Macrophages are a group of heterogeneous cells widely present throughout the body. Under the influence of their specific environments, via both contact and noncontact signals, macrophages integrate into host tissues and contribute to their development and the functions of their constituent cells. Mitochondria are essential organelles that perform intercellular transfers to regulate cell homeostasis. Our review focuses on newly discovered roles of mitochondrial transfers between macrophages and surrounding cells and summarizes emerging functions of macrophages in transmitophagy, metabolic regulation, and immune defense. We also discuss the negative influence of mitochondrial transfers on macrophages, as well as current therapies targeting mitochondria in macrophages. Regulation of macrophages through mitochondrial transfers between macrophages and their surrounding cells is a promising therapy for various diseases, including cardiovascular diseases, inflammatory diseases, obesity, and cancer.

scholarly journals Functions of p53 in pluripotent stem cells

2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 71-78 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xuemei Fu ◽  
Shouhai Wu ◽  
Bo Li ◽  
Yang Xu ◽  
Jingfeng Liu
Keyword(s):  
Stem Cells ◽  
Pluripotent Stem Cells ◽  
Mammalian Cells ◽  
Genomic Stability ◽  
Cell Types ◽  
The Body ◽  
Great Promise ◽  
Primary Role ◽  
Cycle Arrest ◽  
Clinical Potential

Abstract Pluripotent stem cells (PSCs) are capable of unlimited self-renewal in culture and differentiation into all functional cell types in the body, and thus hold great promise for regenerative medicine. To achieve their clinical potential, it is critical for PSCs to maintain genomic stability during the extended proliferation. The critical tumor suppressor p53 is required to maintain genomic stability of mammalian cells. In response to DNA damage or oncogenic stress, p53 plays multiple roles in maintaining genomic stability of somatic cells by inducing cell cycle arrest, apoptosis, and senescence to prevent the passage of genetic mutations to the daughter cells. p53 is also required to maintain the genomic stability of PSCs. However, in response to the genotoxic stresses, a primary role of p53 in PSCs is to induce the differentiation of PSCs and inhibit pluripotency, providing mechanisms to maintain the genomic stability of the self-renewing PSCs. In addition, the roles of p53 in cellular metabolism might also contribute to genomic stability of PSCs by limiting oxidative stress. In summary, the elucidation of the roles of p53 in PSCs will be a prerequisite for developing safe PSC-based cell therapy.

scholarly journals Vascular Endothelial Cells: Heterogeneity and Targeting Approaches

Cells ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (10) ◽  
pp. 2712
Author(s):  
Jan K. Hennigs ◽  
Christiane Matuszcak ◽  
Martin Trepel ◽  
Jakob Körbelin
Keyword(s):  
Endothelial Cells ◽  
Immune Cell ◽  
Vascular System ◽  
Vascular Endothelial Cells ◽  
Treatment Options ◽  
Vascular Diseases ◽  
The Body ◽  
Liver Sinusoids ◽  
Physiological Processes ◽  
Organ Systems

Forming the inner layer of the vascular system, endothelial cells (ECs) facilitate a multitude of crucial physiological processes throughout the body. Vascular ECs enable the vessel wall passage of nutrients and diffusion of oxygen from the blood into adjacent cellular structures. ECs regulate vascular tone and blood coagulation as well as adhesion and transmigration of circulating cells. The multitude of EC functions is reflected by tremendous cellular diversity. Vascular ECs can form extremely tight barriers, thereby restricting the passage of xenobiotics or immune cell invasion, whereas, in other organ systems, the endothelial layer is fenestrated (e.g., glomeruli in the kidney), or discontinuous (e.g., liver sinusoids) and less dense to allow for rapid molecular exchange. ECs not only differ between organs or vascular systems, they also change along the vascular tree and specialized subpopulations of ECs can be found within the capillaries of a single organ. Molecular tools that enable selective vascular targeting are helpful to experimentally dissect the role of distinct EC populations, to improve molecular imaging and pave the way for novel treatment options for vascular diseases. This review provides an overview of endothelial diversity and highlights the most successful methods for selective targeting of distinct EC subpopulations.

scholarly journals Vascular CaMKII: heart and brain in your arteries

2016 ◽  
Vol 311 (3) ◽  
pp. C462-C478 ◽  
Author(s):  
Fanny Toussaint ◽  
Chimène Charbel ◽  
Bruce G. Allen ◽  
Jonathan Ledoux
Keyword(s):  
Cellular Proliferation ◽  
Cell Function ◽  
Vascular System ◽  
Splice Variants ◽  
Cell Types ◽  
Cellular Functions ◽  
Vascular Cell ◽  
Calcium Calmodulin Dependent ◽  
Regulatory Processes ◽  
Neuronal Tissues

First characterized in neuronal tissues, the multifunctional calcium/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase II (CaMKII) is a key signaling component in several mammalian biological systems. Its unique capacity to integrate various Ca2+ signals into different specific outcomes is a precious asset to excitable and nonexcitable cells. Numerous studies have reported roles and mechanisms involving CaMKII in brain and heart tissues. However, corresponding functions in vascular cell types (endothelium and vascular smooth muscle cells) remained largely unexplored until recently. Investigation of the intracellular Ca2+ dynamics, their impact on vascular cell function, the regulatory processes involved and more recently the spatially restricted oscillatory Ca2+ signals and microdomains triggered significant interest towards proteins like CaMKII. Heteromultimerization of CaMKII isoforms (four isoforms and several splice variants) expands this kinase's peculiar capacity to decipher Ca2+ signals and initiate specific signaling processes, and thus controlling cellular functions. The physiological functions that rely on CaMKII are unsurprisingly diverse, ranging from regulating contractile state and cellular proliferation to Ca2+ homeostasis and cellular permeability. This review will focus on emerging evidence of CaMKII as an essential component of the vascular system, with a focus on the kinase isoform/splice variants and cellular system studied.

scholarly journals Magnesium and Vascular Changes in Hypertension

2012 ◽  
Vol 2012 ◽  
pp. 1-7 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ana Rosa Cunha ◽  
Bianca Umbelino ◽  
Margarida L. Correia ◽  
Mario Fritsch Neves
Keyword(s):  
Cardiovascular Diseases ◽  
Vascular System ◽  
Serum Magnesium ◽  
Inverse Correlation ◽  
Antiarrhythmic Effect ◽  
The Body ◽  
Vascular Changes ◽  
Sodium Potassium ◽  
Mineral Supplementation

Many factors have been implicated in the pathogenesis of hypertension, including changes in intracellular concentrations of calcium, sodium, potassium, and magnesium. There is a significant inverse correlation between serum magnesium and incidence of cardiovascular diseases. Magnesium is a mineral with important functions in the body such as antiarrhythmic effect, actions in vascular tone, contractility, glucose metabolism, and insulin homeostasis. In addition, lower concentrations of magnesium are associated with oxidative stress, proinflammatory state, endothelial dysfunction, platelet aggregation, insulin resistance, and hyperglycemia. The conflicting results of studies evaluating the effects of magnesium supplements on blood pressure and other cardiovascular outcomes indicate that the action of magnesium in the vascular system is present but not yet established. Therefore, this mineral supplementation is not indicated as part of antihypertensive treatment, and further studies are needed to better clarify the role of magnesium in the prevention and treatment of cardiovascular diseases.

scholarly journals The Mechanosensory Role of Primary Cilia in Vascular Hypertension

2011 ◽  
Vol 2011 ◽  
pp. 1-9 ◽  
Author(s):  
Surya M. Nauli ◽  
Xingjian Jin ◽  
Beerend P. Hierck
Keyword(s):  
Shear Stress ◽  
Primary Cilia ◽  
Fluid Shear Stress ◽  
Vascular System ◽  
Vascular Endothelial Cells ◽  
Vascular Endothelial ◽  
Fluid Shear ◽  
Cellular Functions ◽  
Continuous Problem

Local regulation of vascular tone plays an important role in cardiovascular control of blood pressure. Aside from chemical or hormonal regulations, this local homeostasis is highly regulated by fluid-shear stress. It was previously unclear how vascular endothelial cells were able to sense fluid-shear stress. The cellular functions of mechanosensory cilia within vascular system have emerged recently. In particular, hypertension is insidious and remains a continuous problem that evolves during the course of polycystic kidney disease (PKD). The basic and clinical perspectives on primary cilia are discussed with regard to the pathogenesis of hypertension in PKD.

scholarly journals Unfathomed Nanomessages to the Heart: Translational Implications of Stem Cell-Derived, Progenitor Cell Exosomes in Cardiac Repair and Regeneration

Cells ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (7) ◽  
pp. 1811
Author(s):  
Charan Thej ◽  
Raj Kishore
Keyword(s):  
Cardiovascular Diseases ◽  
Progenitor Cells ◽  
Cardiac Fibroblasts ◽  
Cell Communication ◽  
Cardiac Regeneration ◽  
Cell Types ◽  
Cardiac Cells ◽  
The Body ◽  
Target Cells

Exosomes formed from the endosomal membranes at the lipid microdomains of multivesicular bodies (MVBs) have become crucial structures responsible for cell communication. This paracrine communication system between a myriad of cell types is essential for maintaining homeostasis and influencing various biological functions in immune, vasculogenic, and regenerative cell types in multiple organs in the body, including, but not limited to, cardiac cells and tissues. Characteristically, exosomes are identifiable by common proteins that participate in their biogenesis; however, many different proteins, mRNA, miRNAs, and lipids, have been identified that mediate intercellular communication and elicit multiple functions in other target cells. Although our understanding of exosomes is still limited, the last decade has seen a steep surge in translational studies involving the treatment of cardiovascular diseases with cell-free exosome fractions from cardiomyocytes (CMs), cardiosphere-derived cells (CDCs), endothelial cells (ECs), mesenchymal stromal cells (MSCs), or their combinations. However, most primary cells are difficult to culture in vitro and to generate sufficient exosomes to treat cardiac ischemia or promote cardiac regeneration effectively. Pluripotent stem cells (PSCs) offer the possibility of an unlimited supply of either committed or terminally differentiated cells and their exosomes for treating cardiovascular diseases (CVDs). This review discusses the promising prospects of treating CVDs using exosomes from cardiac progenitor cells (CPCs), endothelial progenitor cells (EPCs), MSCs, and cardiac fibroblasts derived from PSCs.

scholarly journals Negative Influence by the Force: Mechanically Induced Hyperpolarization via K2P Background Potassium Channels

2021 ◽  
Vol 22 (16) ◽  
pp. 9062
Author(s):  
Miklós Lengyel ◽  
Péter Enyedi ◽  
Gábor Czirják
Keyword(s):  
Membrane Potential ◽  
Ion Channels ◽  
Potassium Channels ◽  
Cell Types ◽  
Negative Influence ◽  
Phospholipid Bilayer ◽  
Cellular Functions ◽  
K2p Channels ◽  
K Current ◽  
Pore Domain

The two-pore domain K2P subunits form background (leak) potassium channels, which are characterized by constitutive, although not necessarily constant activity, at all membrane potential values. Among the fifteen pore-forming K2P subunits encoded by the KCNK genes, the three members of the TREK subfamily, TREK-1, TREK-2, and TRAAK are mechanosensitive ion channels. Mechanically induced opening of these channels generally results in outward K+ current under physiological conditions, with consequent hyperpolarization and inhibition of membrane potential-dependent cellular functions. In the past decade, great advances have been made in the investigation of the molecular determinants of mechanosensation, and members of the TREK subfamily have emerged among the best-understood examples of mammalian ion channels directly influenced by the tension of the phospholipid bilayer. In parallel, the crucial contribution of mechano-gated TREK channels to the regulation of membrane potential in several cell types has been reported. In this review, we summarize the general principles underlying the mechanical activation of K2P channels, and focus on the physiological roles of mechanically induced hyperpolarization.

scholarly journals Analyses of the pericyte transcriptome in ischemic skeletal muscles

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yuan-chi Teng ◽  
Alfredo Porfírio-Sousa ◽  
Giulia Ribeiro ◽  
Marcela Arend ◽  
Lindolfo Meirelles ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Endothelial Cells ◽  
Vascular Endothelial Cells ◽  
Expression Profiles ◽  
Gene Expression Profiles ◽  
Limb Ischemia ◽  
Inflammatory Cells ◽  
Cell Types ◽  
Arterial Disease ◽  
The Body ◽  
Time Points

Abstract Background Peripheral arterial disease (PAD) affects millions of people and compromises quality of life. Critical limb ischemia (CLI), which is the most advanced stage of PAD, can cause nonhealing ulcers and strong chronic pain, and it shortens the patients’ life expectancy. Cell-based angiogenic therapies are becoming a real therapeutic approach to treat CLI. Pericytes are cells that surround vascular endothelial cells to reinforce vessel integrity and regulate local blood pressure and metabolism. In the past decade, researchers also found that pericytes may function as stem or progenitor cells in the body, showing the potential to differentiate into several cell types. We investigated the gene expression profiles of pericytes during the early stages of limb ischemia, as well as the alterations in pericyte subpopulations to better understand the behavior of pericytes under ischemic conditions. Methods In this study, we used a hindlimb ischemia model to mimic CLI in C57/BL6 mice and explore the role of pericytes in regeneration. To this end, muscle pericytes were isolated at different time points after the induction of ischemia. The phenotypes and transcriptomic profiles of the pericytes isolated at these discrete time points were assessed using flow cytometry and RNA sequencing. Results Ischemia triggered proliferation and migration and upregulated the expression of myogenesis-related transcripts in pericytes. Furthermore, the transcriptomic analysis also revealed that pericytes induce or upregulate the expression of a number of cytokines with effects on endothelial cells, leukocyte chemoattraction, or the activation of inflammatory cells. Conclusions Our findings provide a database that will improve our understanding of skeletal muscle pericyte biology under ischemic conditions, which may be useful for the development of novel pericyte-based cell and gene therapies.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document