title: Suppression of tissue inhibitors of metalloproteinases may reverse severe pulmonary arterial hypertension.
abstract: Pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) is a fatal disease characterized by a progressive increase in pulmonary vascular resistance and vascular remodeling leading to right heart failure and early death. The pathology of PAH is associated with endothelium dysfunction and vascular remodeling in pulmonary arteries. In diseased pulmonary arteries, the balance between matrix metalloproteinases (MMP) and tissue inhibitors of metalloproteinases (TIMP) is broken down. In this process, TIMP are up-regulated, which inhibits MMP, promotes extracellular matrix (ECM) deposition and finally leads to vascular remodeling. So, what would happen to PAH if the expression of TIMP was down-regulated in diseased pulmonary vessels? We hypothesize that the attenuation of TIMP at the advanced stage of PAH might reverse severe PAH, via ameliorating vascular remodeling and endothelium repair.
authors.affiliation: Department of Cardiology, The First Affiliated Hospital, School of Medicine, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, PR China.
authors.forename: Wei-Liang
authors.initials: WL
authors.lastname: Tang
authors.forename: Hangyuan
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Guo
authors.forename: Jinxiu
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Yang
authors.forename: Bin
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: Xingxiang
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Wang
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D005109:Extracellular Matrix / Q000378:metabolism; D065627:Familial Primary Pulmonary Hypertension; D006801:Humans; D006976:Hypertension, Pulmonary / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000378:metabolism / Q000628:therapy; D020782:Matrix Metalloproteinases / Q000378:metabolism; D016686:Monocrotaline / Q000627:therapeutic use; D034741:RNA, Small Interfering; D019714:Tissue Inhibitor of Metalloproteinases / Q000037:antagonists & inhibitors / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D034741:RNA, Small Interfering; D019714:Tissue Inhibitor of Metalloproteinases; D016686:Monocrotaline; D020782:Matrix Metalloproteinases