Chemerin as a Driver of Hypertension: A Consideration

The protein chemerin (tazarotene-induced gene, TIG2; RARRES2) is a relatively new adipokine. Many studies support that circulating chemerin levels associate strongly and positively with body mass index, visceral fat, and blood pressure. Here, we focus on the specific relationship of chemerin and blood pressure with the goal of understanding whether and how chemerin drives (pathological) changes in blood pressure such that it could be interfered with therapeutically. We dissect the biosynthesis of chemerin and how current antihypertensive medications change chemerin metabolism. This is followed with a review of what is known about where chemerin is synthesized in the body and what chemerin and its receptors can do to the physiological function of organs important to blood pressure determination (e.g., brain, heart, kidneys, blood vessels, adrenal, and sympathetic nervous system). We synthesize from the literature our best understanding of the mechanisms by which chemerin modifies blood pressure, with knowledge that plasma/serum levels of chemerin may be limited in their pathological relevance. This review reveals several gaps in our knowledge of chemerin biology that could be filled by the collective work of protein chemists, biologists, pharmacologists, and clinicians.

Incidence of Hypertension in Patients Undergoing Surgery at Dhulikhel Hospital - Kathmandu University Hospital.

Background Hypertension is an important public health challenge worldwide and is most important modifiable risk factor for cardiovascular, cerebrovascular and renal disease. Blood pressure determination forms an integral part of anaesthesiologist’s evaluation of hispatient’s condition prior to and during surgery. Data are not available which indicate changes in blood pressure occurring preanaesthetically in hospitalized patients. There are several risks from untreated preoperative hypertension in perioperative and postoperative phase. Objective To know the incidence of hypertension in preoperative patients undergoing major surgery Methods This retrospective observational study was based on the data collected from preanaesthetic checkup record book from January 2010 to December 2010. Results A total of 955 patients were studied and analyzed in terms of hypertension and demographic characteristics. The total incidence of hypertension in preoperative phase was 10.16%. Among them 64.9% being male and 35.1% female. Maximum incidence was found in age group 50-59 years i.e. 26.6%. Among the case detected maximum patients i.e. 52% were patients with newly diagnosed hypertension and among those under medications 61.1% were using calcium channel blockers. ConclusionKnowing the incidence will help in proper preoperative optimization of the hypertensive patients and also help in decreasing the incidence of postoperative complications.DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3126/kumj.v9i2.6286 Kathmandu Univ Med J 2011;9(2):40-43