Vascular Calcification in Chronic Kidney Disease: An Update and Perspective

Abstract

Chronic kidney disease is a devastating condition resulting from irreversible loss of nephron numbers and function and leading to end-stage renal disease and mineral disorders. Vascular calcification, an ectopic deposition of calcium-phosphate salts in blood vessel walls and heart valves, is an independent risk factor of cardiovascular morbidity and mortality in chronic kidney disease. Moreover, aging and related metabolic disorders are essential risk factors for chronic kidney disease and vascular calcification. Marked progress has been recently made in understanding and treating vascular calcification in chronic kidney disease. However, there is a paucity of systematic reviews summarizing this progress, and investigating unresolved issues is warranted. In this systematic review, we aimed to overview the underlying mechanisms of vascular calcification in chronic kidney diseases and discuss the impact of chronic kidney disease on the pathophysiology of vascular calcification. Additionally, we summarized potential clinical diagnostic biomarkers and therapeutic applications for vascular calcification with chronic kidney disease. This review may offer new insights into the pathogenesis, diagnosis, and therapeutic intervention of vascular calcification.

Cellular Mechanisms Underlying the Cardioprotective Role of Allicin on Cardiovascular Diseases

“…On the other hand, vascular calcification (VC) affects arteries and valves of the heart and includes intimal and medial calcification in arteries. VC augments the risk for adverse cardiovascular events and is associated with atherosclerosis, obesity, diabetes, metabolic syndrome, hypertension, and mainly chronic kidney disease (CKD) and end-stage renal diseases (ESRD) [ 64 ]. In this context, allicin reduced the expression of osteoblast markers RUNX2 and BMP2 in vascular smooth muscle cells of the calcified aorta, while calponin and SM22 were increased.…”

Acylations in cardiovascular diseases: advances and perspectives

“…Finally, SCFAs are generally derived from gut microbiota and intracellular metabolites and contribute to blood glucose homeostasis [6,16–18] . It would also be interesting to test whether gut microbiota affects CVD such as atherosclerosis and hypertension by regulating short-chain lysine acylations of histones and such pivotal intracellular signaling regulators as insulin-like growth factor signaling, mTOR, adenosine monophosphate (AMP) activated protein kinase, and Forkhead box O (FOXO) transcription factors [19,20] . These answers would help to illuminate the function and underlying mechanisms of different acylation types in cardiovascular development and diseases and to elucidate how different organs (eg, gut, liver, muscle, heart, and blood vessels) communicate with each other.…”

SIRT6 in Vascular Diseases, from Bench to Bedside

“…The increasing aging population has created a huge social burden as it consumes large amounts of human, economic, and medical resources. Various diseases are correlated with aging, including cardiovascular diseases, stroke, cancer, and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease [ 1 , 2 ]. For instance, aging is a key risk factor for cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases and the vascular complications of currently widespread SARS-CoV-2 infections [ 3 ].…”