title: Smoking, metalloproteinases, and vascular disease.
abstract: Smoking causes up to 11% of total global cardiovascular deaths. Smoking has numerous effects that may promote atherosclerosis through vascular inflammation and oxidative stress, but the pathogenesis of smoking-related cardiovascular disease remains incompletely understood. The matrix metalloproteinases, a family of endopeptidases that can degrade extracellular matrix components in both physiological and pathophysiological states, play an important role in smoking-associated chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, the second leading cause of smoking attributable mortality. Emerging evidence indicates that the matrix metalloproteinases may also contribute to smoking-related vascular disease. Here we discuss the potential relationship between smoking, matrix metalloproteinases, and acceleration of vascular disease.
authors.affiliation: Division of Cardiovascular Medicine, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Cambridge, MA, USA.
authors.forename: Todd S
authors.initials: TS
authors.lastname: Perlstein
authors.forename: Richard T
authors.initials: RT
authors.lastname: Lee
mesh_terms: D050197:Atherosclerosis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000503:physiopathology*; D006801:Humans; D020782:Matrix Metalloproteinases / Q000378:metabolism*; D012907:Smoking / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000503:physiopathology*; D014657:Vasculitis / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000378:metabolism / Q000503:physiopathology
chemical_list: D020782:Matrix Metalloproteinases