Dangerous blood pressure caused by specific signaling in the brain

About 6 million Australians aged 18 and over suffer from hypertension. Of these, more than two-thirds had uncontrolled high blood pressure (not taking medication), accounting for 4 million adult Australians.

High blood pressure, or hypertension, is one of the major risk factors for heart disease.

The process in which high blood pressure causes heart disease is not completely understood.

But scientists at the Baker Heart and Diabetes Institute have discovered that high blood pressure caused by specific brain signaling promotes heart disease by altering stem cells with bone marrow.

The results, published in Haematologica Demonstrate how a hyperactive sympathetic nervous system that causes high blood pressure may require bone marrow stem cells to produce more white blood cells that clog the blood vessels.

Associate Professor Andrew Murphy, Head of Hematopoiesis and Leukocyte Biology at the Baker Institute, said these findings represent a new era for heart disease research.

"Hypertension is a major and independent risk factor for atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease, but we need more information to determine the consequences in terms of heart attack and stroke," he said. said Associate Professor Murphy.

Atherosclerosis-related cardiovascular disease is an accumulation of cholesterol plaque in the artery walls, causing an obstruction of blood flow.

"We now know that significant changes in the immune system contribute significantly to heart disease," he said. "Our goal was to determine how the sympathetic nervous system of the brain directly promotes atherosclerosis in the context of hypertension."

"We found that this form of high blood pressure, often associated with stress, caused changes in the bone marrow, which resulted in an increase in the number of white blood cells in our vessels." This is significant because the general vision of hypertension is that it is mainly a disease, blood vessels, which means that other events damaging to the heart are missed. "

The team is currently exploring the specific molecules involved, which could explain why some current therapies are ineffective. They also suggest that the management of stress, anxiety, and pain will probably help control this form of hypertension and its effects on bone marrow stem cells.

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More information:
Annas Al-Sharea et al., Chronic hypertension of sympathetic origin promotes atherosclerosis by increasing hematopoiesis, Haematologica (2018). DOI: 10.3324 / haematol.2018.192898