Cardiovascular calcification

Takx, R.A.P., et al. The interdependence between cardiovascular calcifications in different arterial beds and vascular risk factors in patients at high cardiovascular risk. Atherosclerosis 238(1), 140-146 (2015)... 

Strebel RF, Girerd RJ, Wagner BM. Cardiovascular calcification in rats with hypervita-minosis A, Arch Pathol 1969 87 290-297. 

Systemic anticoagulation for the prevention of dialysis catheter thrombosis is controversial for its inherent risk-benefit issues while it may improve catheter survival, it can also increase the risk of side effects, such as bleeding and cardiovascular calcifications due to inhibition of vitamin K-dependent proteins such as MGP (Matrix Gla protein) [67, 68]. 

Cardiovascular calcifications (valvular disease, higher arterial stiffness)... 

Hutchison and Laville 2008 Mehrotra, Martin et al. 2008). Another advantage of lanthanum carbonate over calcium-based drugs is that rather than increasing the risk of hypercalcaemia and cardiovascular calcification, lanthanum carbonate actually prevents arterial calcification (in animal experiments) (Neven, Dams et al. 2009). Nevertheless, a recent meta-analysis of published clinical trials (Navaneethan, Palmer et al. 2009) concluded that there are as yet there are insufficient data to establish the comparative superiority of non-calcium-binding agents, such as lanthanum carbonate, over calcium-containing phosphate binders for such important patient-level outcomes as all-cause mortality and cardiovascular end points. 

Atherosclerosis is main cause of cardiovascular deaths. It is characterized by a localised plaque in the intima and is composed of cholesterol esters, deposition of fibrous proteins and calcification. These plaques may narrow the arterial lumen and can cause distalischemia. The coronary and cerebral circulation are main sites of atherosclerosis. Raised levels of VLDL, LDL... 

Gennari C, Fischer JA. Cardiovascular action of calcitonin gene-related peptide in humans. Calcif Tissue Int 1985 37(6) 581 1. 

Osteoporosis is a condition involving loss of bone mineral and matrix in elderly people, and may affect 40% of women and 12% of men as they age. The loss of bone mineral is associated with inappropriate calcification of other tissues, especially arteries and the kidneys. This may be more dangerous than the loss of bone, in that the majority of deaths among women suffering from osteoporosis are from cardiovascular disease. 

Induced calcification of the cardiovascular system has been accomplished in cattle by administration of high levels of vitamin D here the mineral substance found in the tissues was dahllite, as demonstrated by X-ray diffraction (Capen et al., 1966). Such disturbances of normal metabolic processes have been known for many years, but the mechanism of physiological response remains a mystery. 

Blacher J, Guerin AP, Pannier B, Marchais SJ, London GM. Arterial calcifications, arterial stiffness, and cardiovascular risk in end-stage renal disease. Hypertension 2001 38 938-42. 

Cardiovascular Effects. Focal myocytolysis, fibrosis, and calcification of the heart were observed in mice receiving 1.6 mg/kg/day 1,2-dimethylhydrazine in the feed for 5 months (Visek et al. 1991). These effects were not observed in mice receiving 0.75 mg/kg/day. No adverse histological effects were observed in the hearts of mice receiving 9.5 mg/kg/day hydrazine in the drinking water for 2 years (Steinhoff et al. 1990). These data are too limited to make firm conclusions regarding the cardiovascular effects of hydrazines. 

Hyperphosphatemia, changes in calcium homeostasis, and secondary hyperparathyroidism are common in patients with CKD and contribute to extravascular calcifications and an increased risk of cardiovascular mortality. 

To study CAVD in a controlled system, animal models of valvular dysfunction are utilized in the laboratory setting. The same principles used to diagnose AS in humans may be applied in the study of the progression of this disease in a wide array of animal models. Valvular cells extracted from bovine sources have been widely used due to the ease of extraction and because the structure of the bovine aortic valve is similar to the human aortic valve [65-67]. Porcine models have been utilized to a large extent for studies of the aortic valve, since the heart and cardiovascular system are nearer in size to the human equivalents [68-70]. A relevant porcine model for aortic valve calcification has been developed by Balachandran et al [71] in which the effects of cyclic stretch were studied using porcine aortic valve leaflets in a unidirectional stretch bioreactor. Calcification was significantly... 

Yanagawa, B., et al. miRNA-141 is a novel regulator of BMP-2-mediated calcification in aortic stenosis. The Journal of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery 144(1), 256-262.e2 (2012)... 

With regard to cardiovascular surgery, although ECM-derived medical implants can be constructed from a variety of materials, there are several desirable properties in common to these materials when used in the vascular system. The final implantable object should have a low risk of restenosis and calcification. The material should be resistant to infection, antithrombogenic, stable, durable, and easy to obtain, handle, and prepare. Ideally, the ECM-based biomaterial should have a compliance comparable to host vessels. ... 

Cardiovascular Matrix Gla protein (MGP) has been previously described as an important inhibitor of vascular calcification, and inhibition of carboxylation of this enzyme by vitamin K antagonists has been associated with excessive coronary vessel calcification [1. In a case-control study in 19 Dutch patients aged under 55 years and 18 healthy age-matched controls, long-term coumarin anticoagulant therapy was strongly associated with femoral artery calcification (OR=8.5 95% CI=2.0, 35), and there was a strong correlation between coumarin use and plasma MGP concentrations [2. ... 

The underl5ung cause of most cases of cardiovascular disease is atherosclerosis [3]. This term describes the stenotic type of atherosclerotic disease in which fatty ( atheromatous ) deposits are formed in the intimal layer of the larger elastic arteries and certain muscular arteries, and interfere with blood flow. Further consequences of this process are fibrosis and calcification of the subintimal and medial layers, and in the narrowed lumen, the growing possibility of thrombosis, leading to total occlusion. 

Chronic renal failure is known to be associated with an accelerated process of atherosclerosis. Importantly, cardiovascular disease is the main cause of morbidity and mortality with CKD and kidney transplant recipients. High serum phosphate levels have been shown to be associated with higher mortality for all causes, cardiovascular mortality and vascular calcification (Block et al. 2004 Young et al. 2004). Phosphorus retention develops in CKD when the glomerular filtration rate (GFR) falls below 25 ml/min. It was estimated that for each 1 mg/dl of serum phosphate increase in CKD, the risk of having myocardial infarction increases by 35% (Kestenbaum et al. 2005). 

Arad Y, Goodman KJ etal. (2005) Coronary calcification, coronary disease risk factors, C-reactive protein, and atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease events the St. Francis Heart Study. J Am Coll Cardiol 46 158-165... 

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