title: Role of OPG/RANKL/RANK axis on the vasculature.
abstract: Vascular calcification, a degenerative process considered in the past to be a passive procedure, has now been suggested to be related to ossification. Many proteins responsible for bone formation have been identified on the arterial wall. The OPG/RANKL/RANK axis, responsible for ossification and bone mineralization, seems to play a major role in vasculature and atherosclerosis. Mice lacking OPG gene present osteoporosis and arterial calcification, while overexpression of OPG gene leads to osteopetrosis. In the present review the latest knowledge related to the effects of the OPG/RANKL/RANK axis on vasculature, including atherosclerosis, will be analyzed. The clinical significance of circulating OPG and RANKL levels in vascular diseases will also be referred.
authors.affiliation: Department of Forensic Medicine and Toxicology, Medical School, University of Athens, Athens, Greece.
authors.forename: A E
authors.initials: AE
authors.lastname: Papadopouli
authors.forename: C N
authors.initials: CN
authors.lastname: Klonaris
authors.forename: S E
authors.initials: SE
authors.lastname: Theocharis
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002114:Calcinosis / Q000503:physiopathology; D051379:Mice; D008954:Models, Biological; D053244:Osteoprotegerin / Q000737:chemistry / Q000502:physiology*; D053245:RANK Ligand / Q000737:chemistry / Q000502:physiology*; D053246:Receptor Activator of Nuclear Factor-kappa B / Q000502:physiology*; D014652:Vascular Diseases / Q000503:physiopathology*
chemical_list: D053244:Osteoprotegerin; D053245:RANK Ligand; D053246:Receptor Activator of Nuclear Factor-kappa B; C505686:TNFRSF11A protein, human; C505687:Tnfrsf11a protein, mouse