Mineralocorticoid Receptor and Endothelial Dysfunction in Hypertension

AbstractPurpose of ReviewTo review the latest reports of the contributions of the endothelial mineralocorticoid receptor to endothelial dysfunction and hypertension to begin to determine the clinical potential for this pathway for hypertension treatment.Recent FindingsEndothelial mineralocorticoid receptor expression is sex-specifically increased in female mice and humans compared with males. Moreover, the expression of endothelial mineralocorticoid receptors is increased by endothelial progesterone receptor activation and naturally occurring fluctuations in progesterone levels (estrous, pregnancy) predict endothelial mineralocorticoid receptor expression levels in female mice. These data follow many previous reports that have indicated that endothelial mineralocorticoid receptor deletion is protective in the development of obesity- and diabetes-associated endothelial dysfunction in female mouse models. These studies have more recently been followed up by reports indicating that both intact endothelial mineralocorticoid receptor and progesterone receptor expression are required for obesity-associated, leptin-mediated endothelial dysfunction in female mice. In addition, the intra-endothelial signaling pathway for endothelial mineralocorticoid receptors to induce dysfunction requires the intact expression of α-epithelial sodium channels (αENaC) in endothelial cells in females.SummaryEndothelial mineralocorticoid receptors are sex-specifically upregulated in the vasculature of...
Source: Current Hypertension Reports - Category: Primary Care Source Type: research