G-CSF Mediates Increased Renal Neutrophils and Kidney Damage in a Psoriasis Mouse Model.

Background: Psoriasis is an autoimmune skin disease associated with increased incidence and severity of chronic kidney disease and hypertension. The mechanisms linking psoriasis skin inflammation with these comorbidities remain unclear.

Methods: We used flow cytometry, radiotelemetric blood pressure measurements, and histological and ELISA-based assessments of renal damage in mice with experimental psoriasis induced by keratinocyte-specific overexpression of (KC-Tie2) and their littermate controls.

Left Carotid Bulb Intima-Media Thickness Correlates with Age and Specific T lymphocyte Populations in People Living with and without HIV.

Background: Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is a leading cause of mortality worldwide, with carotid atherosclerosis playing a key role in its progression. Carotid intima-media thickness (CIMT) is a well-established biomarker for subclinical atherosclerosis. Emerging evidence suggests that immune dysregulation, particularly T-cell activation and exhaustion, may contribute to vascular pathology.

Hypertension and the Gut Microbiome: A Science Advisory From the American Heart Association.

Although substantial advancements have been made in hypertension research, translation of this research into new pharmacotherapies remains challenging. The need for new therapies is imperative: 15% to 20% of patients with hypertension have treatment-resistant hypertension, which often persists despite aggressive clinical treatments consisting of ≥3 medication classes, including a diuretic. Numerous preclinical studies have demonstrated that alterations in the gut microbiome affect blood pressure, suggesting an important role for this nonconventional cardiovascular risk factor.

Salt sensitivity and myocardial fibrosis: unraveling the silent cardiovascular remodeling.

Salt sensitivity is a well-recognized contributor to cardiovascular risk, traditionally linked to elevated blood pressure. However, emerging evidence suggests that high dietary sodium may also promote myocardial fibrosis through non-hemodynamic mechanisms, including the activation of redox-sensitive and profibrotic pathways. Despite growing mechanistic insights, the connection between salt sensitivity and myocardial fibrosis remains underexplored, particularly in human studies.

Vasohibins in Health and Disease: From Angiogenesis to Tumorigenesis, Multiorgan Dysfunction, and Brain-Heart Remodeling.

Vasohibins (VASHs), comprising VASH-1 and VASH-2, were initially identified as regulators of angiogenesis. Recent studies, however, have unveiled their novel role in fibrosis and microtubule detyrosination. The dysregulated expression of VASHs is associated with several pathological processes, such as angiogenesis dysfunction, microtubule detyrosination, and fibrosis, contributing to various diseases.

3D Mitochondrial Structure in Aging Human Skeletal Muscle: Insights Into MFN-2-Mediated Changes.

Age-related skeletal muscle atrophy, known as sarcopenia, is characterized by loss of muscle mass, strength, endurance, and oxidative capacity. Although exercise has been shown to mitigate sarcopenia, the underlying governing mechanisms are poorly understood. Mitochondrial dysfunction is implicated in aging and sarcopenia; however, few studies explore how mitochondrial structure contributes to this dysfunction.

CD3+ T-cell: CD14+ monocyte complexes are dynamic and increased with HIV and glucose intolerance.

Persistent systemic inflammation is associated with an elevated risk of cardiometabolic diseases. However, the characteristics of the innate and adaptive immune systems in individuals who develop these conditions remain poorly defined. Doublets, or cell-cell complexes, are routinely eliminated from flow cytometric and other immune phenotyping analyses, which limits our understanding of their relationship to disease states.

Regulatory roles of PIWI-interacting RNAs in cardiovascular disease.

Cardiovascular disease remains the number one cause of death worldwide. Across the spectrum of cardiovascular pathologies, all are accompanied by changes in gene expression profiles spanning a variety of cellular components of the myocardium. Alterations in gene expression are regulated by small noncoding RNAs (sncRNAs), with P-element-induced WImpy testis (PIWI)-interacting RNAs (piRNAs) being the most abundant of the sncRNAs in the human genome.

Experimental pressure overload induces a cardiac neoantigen specific humoral immune response.

Inflammation is a hallmark of heart failure (HF), however anti-inflammatory therapies have yet to translate clinically. T-cells are central to cardiac pathology in experimental models of HF with reduced and preserved ejection fraction (HFrEF and HFpEF), however their antigen requirements differ, as shown in previous studies. Here we demonstrate that pressure overload elicits a cardiac and lymphoid B-cell humoral response characterized by autoantibodies (AAbs) towards the same cardiac neoantigens that induce T-cells in an experimental model of HFrEF, a novel mechanism distinct from an experimental model of HFpEF.

Salt sensitivity of blood pressure: mechanisms and sex-specific differences.

Salt sensitivity of blood pressure (SSBP) is an independent risk factor for cardiovascular disease in individuals with or without hypertension. However, the mechanisms and management of SSBP remain unclear, mainly because the diagnosis of this condition relies on salt loading-depletion protocols that are not feasible in the clinic. The prevalence of hypertension is lower in premenopausal women than in men, but this sex-specific difference is reversed after menopause.

The influence of HIV infection on myocardial fibrosis diagnosed by cardiac magnetic resonance imaging in adults: a systematic review and meta-analysis of observation studies.

Introduction: Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection is linked to myocardial fibrosis. Observational studies using cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR) have explored this relationship but scarcity of data synthesis limits our understanding. Our systematic review and meta-analysis aimed to synthesize associations between HIV and myocardial fibrosis from CMR-based observational studies in adults.

Moving toward a better understanding of renal lymphatics: challenges and opportunities.

The development of lymphatic-specific markers has enabled detailed visualization of the lymphatic vascular network that has greatly enhanced our ability to explore this often-overlooked system. Lymphatics remove fluid, solutes, macromolecules, and cells from the interstitium and return them to circulation. The kidneys have lymphatics.

Aging and sex differences in salt sensitivity of blood pressure.

Salt sensitivity of blood pressure (SSBP) is a complex physiological trait characterized by changes in blood pressure in response to dietary salt intake. Aging introduces an additional layer of complexity to the pathophysiology of SSBP, with mitochondrial dysfunction, epigenetic modifications, and alterations in gut microbiota emerging as critical factors. Despite advancements in understanding these mechanisms, the processes driving increased salt sensitivity with age and their differential impacts across sexes remain unclear.

Epigenetic Regulation of Innate and Adaptive Immune Cells in Salt-Sensitive Hypertension.

Access to excess dietary sodium has heightened the risk of cardiovascular diseases, particularly affecting individuals with salt sensitivity of blood pressure. Our research indicates that innate antigen-presenting immune cells contribute to rapid blood pressure increases in response to excess sodium intake. Emerging evidence suggests that epigenetic reprogramming, with subsequent transcriptional and metabolic changes, of innate immune cells allows these cells to have a sustained response to repetitive stimuli.

Sodium-Directed Crosstalk Between Immune Cells and Lymphatic Vessels.

Purpose Of Review: The role of the lymphatic system in clearing extravasated fluids, lipid transport, and immune surveillance is well established, and lymphatic vasculature can provide a vital role in facilitating crosstalk among various organ systems. Lymphatic vessels rely on intrinsic and local factors to absorb and propel lymph from the interstitium back to the systemic circulation. The biological implications of local influences on lymphatic vessels are underscored by the exquisite sensitivity of these vessels to environmental stimuli.

ET-3/ETBR Mediates Na-Activated Immune Signaling and Kidney Lymphatic Dynamics.

Background: Lymphatic collecting vessels in the kidney are critical in clearing interstitial fluid, macromolecules, and infiltrating immune cells. Dysfunction of the lymphatic vessels can disrupt this process and exacerbate injury-associated inflammation in many disease conditions. We previously found that sodium accumulates within the kidney interstitium during proteinuric kidney injury and elevated sodium environments stimulate isolevuglandin production in antigen-presenting cells, stimulating T cells, and modulating inflammatory responses.

A Future Avenue of Treatment Ulcerative Colitis Targeting Macrophage Polarization: A Phytochemical Application.

Background: Ulcerative colitis (UC) is a prevalent inflammatory bowel disease primarily impacting the mucosa of the colon. It is characterized by recurring and incurable symptoms and causes immense suffering and significant economic burden due to limited treatment options. Typical symptoms of UC include diarrhea, alterations in bowel patterns, bleeding from the rectum, rectal pain or urgency, anemia, and tiredness.

Epithelial Na+ Channels, Immune Cells, and Salt.

Epithelial Na+ channels (ENaCs) are known to affect blood pressure through their role in transporting Na+ in the distal nephron of the kidney. While expressed in other epithelial tissues, there is growing evidence that ENaCs are also expressed in nonepithelial tissues where their activity influences blood pressure. This review provides an overview of ENaCs and key mechanisms that regulate channel activity.

HIV persists in late coronary atheroma and is associated with increased local inflammation and disease progression.

Chronic inflammation contributes to the prevalence of cardiovascular disease in people living with HIV (PLWH). The immune mechanisms driving atherosclerosis progression in PLWH remain unclear. This study conducted comprehensive assessments of medium-sized coronary arteries and aorta from deceased PLWH and controls without HIV using DNA/RNA assays, spatial transcriptomics, and high-resolution mass spectrometry.