Dendritic cells (DC) are highly specialized antigen-presenting cells with a unique ability to activate resting T lymphocytes and initiate primary immune responses. Angiotensin II (AII) is involved in key events of the inflammatory response. Because our previous work implicated an effect of AII on differentiation and function of murine and human DC, we investigated the impact of AII type 1 recep...

Typical characteristics of chronic congestive heart failure (HF) are increased sympathetic drive, altered autonomic reflexes, and altered body fluid regulation. These abnormalities lead to an increased risk of mortality, particularly in the late stage of chronic HF. Recent evidence suggests that central nervous system (CNS) mechanisms may be important in these abnormalities during HF. Exercise ...

Chronic heart failure (HF) is characterized by increased sympathetic drive. Enhanced angiotensin II (ANG II) activity may contribute to the increased sympathoexcitation under HF condition. The present study examined sympathoexcitation by 1) the effects of ANG II in the paraventricular nucleus (PVN) on renal sympathetic nerve activity (RSNA), and 2) the altered ANG II type 1 (AT(1)) receptor exp...

The mechanisms by which antenatal glucocorticoids facilitate postnatal circulatory function in preterm infants are uncertain but may be related to augmented angiotensinergic functions. To test the hypothesis that the effects of glucocorticoids on postnatal cardiovascular and sympathetic activity are mediated via the renin-angiotensin system, we studied the effects of AT(1) receptor blockade on ...

BACKGROUND The contribution of nonangiotensinergic effects of converting enzyme inhibitors to their hemodynamic effects in patients with chronic heart failure is not clear. A comparison of the effects of renin and converting enzyme inhibition should help to clarify this issue. METHODS AND RESULTS Thirty-six patients with chronic heart failure (New York Heart Association class II or III) were ...

With Enalapril To the Editor: I am writing regarding the report by Spaulding et al that appeared in Circulation.1 These authors investigated the acute systemic and pulmonary hemodynamic response to 10 mg of enalapril in 20 patients with congestive heart failure; the patients were randomly assigned to receive either aspirin or ticlopidine. Enalapril, given after 1 week of such treatment, caused ...

Changes in body water/sodium balance are tightly controlled by the central nervous system (CNS) to avoid abnormal cardiovascular function and the development of pathological states. Every time there is a disturbance in extracellular sodium concentration or body sodium content, there is also a change in extracellular fluid volume and, depending on its magnitude, this can be associated with an ad...

The discovery that all components of the renin-angiotensin system (RAS) are present in the brain led investigators to postulate the existence of a local brain RAS. Supporting this, angiotensin immunoreactive neurones have been visualised in the brain. Two major pathways were described: a forebrain pathway which connects circumventric-ular organs to the median preoptic nucleus, par-aventricular ...

BRAIN-STEM NUCLEI PLAY A CRUCIAL role in the regulation of blood pressure (BP) and other cardiovascular functions (2, 4). Defect(s) in central neural mechanisms that control sympathetic outflow have been suggested to be involved, in part, in the onset and maintenance of the elevated BP in hypertension. It is well known that hypertension involves a genetic predisposition. Since the genetic “defe...