Artikel
Reduced myocardial NGF production and decreased norepinephrine stores in human essential hypertension
Verminderte myokardiale NGF Produktion und verringerte Noradrenalin Speicher bei essentieller Hypertonie
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Autoren
Veröffentlicht: | 11. November 2004 |
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Gliederung
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Background
Increased nerve growth factor (NGF) expression has been linked to sympathetic hyperinnervation in rat models of hypertension. Whether this might also be the case in human hypertension has not yet been investigated.
Methods and Results
Cardiac NE stores, as an index of sympathetic innervation, were measured from the rate of overflow of the NE metabolite, dihydroxyphenylglycol (DHPG), and its tritiated form into the coronary sinus (CS) during an infusion of [3H]NE in 39 hypertensive patients (EH) and 73 matched normotensive control subjects (NT), on the basis that the [3H]DHPG/DHPG concentration ratio in CS plasma is inversely proportional to vesicular NE stores in the heart. To complement these data, we also determined the transcardiac gradients for plasma NGF. Cardiac NE spillover was higher in hypertensive patients (NT: 89.5±6.6 vs EH: 142.9±14.8 pmol/min; p<0.01). However, the plasma NGF gradient across the heart (NT: 21.1±6.6 vs EH: -5.8±6.2pg/ml; p<0.05) and the size of cardiac NE stores (NT: 713±67 vs EH: 328±180 nmol; p<0.05) were substantially reduced in hypertensive patients.
Conclusions
Cardiac sympathetic activation in essential hypertension is accompanied by reduced cardiac NGF production and decreased NE stores. In contrast to animal models of hypertension, sympathetic hyperinnervation seems to be excluded in human hypertension, where the decrease in NGF production and cardiac NE stores may represent an adaptive response to increased cardiac NE release.