Vascular calcification, long thought to result from passive degeneration, involves a complex, regulated process of biomineralization resembling osteogenesis. Evidence indicates that proteins controlling bone mineralization are also involved in the regulation of vascular calcification. Artery wall cells grown in culture are induced to become osteogenic by inflammatory and atherogenic stimuli. Fu...

OBJECTIVE Vascular calcification which refers to ectopic mineralization in vascular cells is associated with several conditions, such as chronic kidney disease, atherosclerosis, and diabetes mellitus. Estrogen-related receptor (ERR)γ is a member of the orphan nuclear receptor superfamily, which plays diverse roles in regulating homeostatic and metabolic processes. However, the role of ERRγ in v...

Vascular calcification, long thought to result from passive degeneration, involves a complex, regulated process of biomineralization resembling osteogenesis. Evidence indicates that proteins controlling bone mineralization are also involved in the regulation of vascular calcification. Artery wall cells grown in culture are induced to become osteogenic by inflammatory and atherogenic stimuli. Fu...

The current paper is a Perspective & New Opinion article that offers the term “Vascular pseudo-ossification” as a new term for “vascular calcification” phenomenon in chronic kidney disease (CKD). Vascular calcification is a well-documented complication of CKD. Patients with CKD develop extensive medial calcification, which causes increased arterial stiffness that represents an independent predi...

Vascular calcification is associated with significant cardiovascular morbidity and mortality in patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD). Factors unique to patients with CKD, such as hyperphosphatemia, predispose these patients to early and progressive vascular calcification. Hyperphosphatemia appears to be involved in a number of mechanisms that trigger and advance the progression of vascula...

Vascular calcification is a life-threatening complication of cardiovascular disease and an independent risk factor for morbidity and mortality. It is a complex and active cellular process that includes multiple players and regulators resembling physiological bone formation. Currently, it is generally accepted that our understanding of the molecular aetiology of vascular calcification remains in...

BACKGROUND A significant association between vascular calcification and osteoporosis has been noted, suggesting that calcium homeostasis is important in vascular calcification as well as in osteoporosis. Moreover, results of our previous studies suggest that calcium-regulating hormones such as parathyroid hormone-related peptide (PTHrP) may modulate vascular calcification. Therefore, we hypothe...

BACKGROUND Vascular calcification is an indicator of elevated cardiovascular risk. Vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs), the predominant cell type involved in medial vascular calcification, can undergo phenotypic transition to both osteoblastic and chondrocytic cells within a calcifying environment. METHODOLOGY/PRINCIPAL FINDINGS In the present study, using in vitro VSMC calcification studies...