Molecular Interactions of Arterial Hypertension in Its Target Organs

• Main Authors: Joanna Kućmierz, Weronika Frąk, Ewelina Młynarska, Beata Franczyk, Jacek Rysz
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: MDPI AG 2021-09-01
• Series: International Journal of Molecular Sciences
• Subjects: arterial hypertension; blood pressure; renin-angiotensin-system; vascular remodeling; reactive oxygen species; matrix metalloproteinases
• Online Access: https://www.mdpi.com/1422-0067/22/18/9669

Arterial hypertension (AH) is a major risk factor for the development of cardiovascular diseases. It is estimated that the disease affects between 10% and 20% of the adult population and is responsible for 5.8% of all deaths worldwide. Several pathophysiologic factors are crucial in AH, including inappropriate activation of the renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system, oxidative stress and inflammation. The heart, kidney, brain, retina and arterial blood vessels are prime targets of hypertensive damage. Uncontrolled and untreated AH accelerates the damage to these organs and could cause their failure. Damage to these organs could also manifest as coronary heart disease, cognitive impairment, retinopathy or optic neuropathy. For better understanding, it is important to analyze molecular factors which take part in pathogenesis of AH and hypertension-related target organ damage. In our paper, we would like to focus on molecular interactions of AH in the heart, blood vessels, brain and kidneys. We focus on matrix metalloproteinases, the role of immune system, the renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system and oxidative stress in hypertensive induced organ damage.