Interactions Between Innervation, Vascular Aging, and Loss of Capillary Density in the Heart

One noted aspect of vascular aging is that the processes of angiogenesis become less effective with age, and as a consequence aged tissues lose capillary density. This harms function by reducing the supply of nutrients and oxygen to energy-hungry tissues such as muscles and brain, as well as putting stress on the remaining vasculature due to changes in the dynamics of blood flow. Accompanying this form of vascular aging is a progressive innervation, a loss of peripheral nervous system connections. These two complex processes interact strongly with one another, given the proximity of blood vessels and nerves, and signaling that passes back and forth between the cell types involved. In today's open access commentary, researchers discuss recent findings regarding the interaction of blood vessel aging and peripheral nervous system aging, with a focus on the heart, where the consequences of these processes include various forms of arrhythmia. Interestingly, innervation precedes loss of capillary density, something that might form the basis for further investigation in and of itself, given the importance of this loss to tissue function. The primary result, however, is that researchers found one specific signal that appears to be released by endothelial cells in aged tissues, and which is disruptive to peripheral nerve formation and maintenance. This gives a target for drug development and further research into this form of degenerative aging. Endothelial cell dysfunc...
Source: Fight Aging! - Category: Research Authors: Tags: Medicine, Biotech, Research Source Type: blogs