The endogenous angiogenic response to ischemia was impaired in ZDF rats, possibly due to down-regulation of angiogenic factors. Ad2/HIF-1 alpha/VP16 enhanced collateral development and reduced vascular leakage in the ischemic hindlimb of ZDF rats indicating that hybrid HIF-1 alpha angiogenic therapy may be efficacious for peripheral vascular disease with a diabetic comorbidity.

Unexpectedly, the lesion area of the entire aorta was reduced significantly in the AAV8-ASM virus-treated group. Hepatic expression and secretion of ASM into the circulation did not accelerate or exacerbate, but rather decreased, lesion formation in ApoE(-/-) mice. Thus, plasma ASM activity does not appear to be rate limiting for plaque formation during atherogenesis.

ObjectiveAlthough the plasma B-type natriuretic peptide (BNP) level is a marker of heart failure, it is unclear whether BNP per se plays a pivotal role for pathogenic mechanisms underlying the development of ischemic heart disease (IHD). In this study, we retrospectively examined the plasma BNP levels in stable patients with IHD and compared to stable patients with cardiovascular diseases other than IHD.MethodsThe study population was 2088 patients (1698 males and 390 females) who were admitted to our hospital due to IHD (n = 1,661) and non-IHD (n = 427) and underwent cardiac catheterization. Measurements of the hemodynamic parameters and blood sampling were performed.ResultsThe plasma BNP levels were significantly lower in the IHD group than in the non-IHD group (p<0.001). The multiple regression analysis examining the logBNP values showed that age, a male gender, low left ventricular ejection fraction, low body mass index, serum creatinine, atrial fibrillation and IHD per se were significant explanatory variables. When the total study population was divided according to gender, the plasma BNP levels were found to be significantly lower in the IHD group than in the non-IHD group among males (p<0.001), but not females (p = NS). Furthermore, a multiple logistic regression analysis of IHD showed the logBNP value to be a significant explanatory variable in males (regression coefficient: −0.669, p<0.001), but not females (p = NS).ConclusionsThe plasma BNP levels were relatively low in stable patients with IHD compared with those observed in stable patients with non-IHD; this tendency was evident in males. Perhaps, the low reactivity of BNP is causally associated with IHD in males. We hope that this study will serve as a test of future prospective studies.

We hypothesized that statin may directly affect vascular endothelial cells regulating blood supply to the myocardium rather than affecting myocytes. Pravastatin perturbed H2O2-induced endothelial NOS reduction and inhibited H2O2-increased caspase-3 activation in cultured vascular endothelial cells. These data suggested that pravastatin prevent cardiac dysfunction by acting on vascular endothelial cells. Furthermore, early administration of pravastatin to the patients during acute onset of myocardial infarction may be beneficial to prevent myocardial damage caused by fibrosis associated with ischemia.

Eplerenone, a selective aldosterone blocker, has been shown to attenuate cardiac fibrosis and decrease cardiovascular events in both experimental and clinical studies. We examined the cardioprotective effect of eplerenone in myocardial infarction (MI) rats receiving different levels of salt in their diet. The MI rats were randomly divided into five groups: Group CL, animals received a low-salt diet (0.015%); Group EpL, a lowsalt diet with eplerenone (100 mg/kg/day in food); Group CH, a high-salt diet (0.9%); Group EpH, a high-salt diet with eplerenone; and Group C, a normal salt diet (0.3%). These diets were continued for 4 weeks.

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