The incidence of coronary artery calcification was studied in 65 hearts obtained at necropsy. In cases over the age of 40 there was an incidence of coronary calcification of 79 per cent. The incidence increases with age and is slightly more common in men. These lesions occur more commonly in the left coronary circulation than the right. There is a strong association with aortic valve calcificat...

Hyperphosphatemia and vascular calcification are frequent complications of chronic renal failure and bone morphogenetic protein 7 (BMP7) has been shown to protect against development of vascular calcification in uremia. The present investigation examined the potential reversibility of established uremic vascular calcification by treatment of uremic rats with BMP7. A control model of isogenic tr...

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES Residual renal function (RRF) predicts survival and shows an important inverse relation with cardiac hypertrophy in peritoneal dialysis (PD) patients. We hypothesized that valvular calcification and the calcification milieu may be part of the process linking loss of RRF and cardiac hypertrophy. DESIGN, SETTING, PARTICIPANTS, & MEASUREMENTS A cross-sectional study was...

OBJECTIVE Vascular calcification is a characteristic feature of atherosclerosis, diabetes mellitus, and end-stage renal disease. We have demonstrated that activation of protein kinase B (AKT) upregulates runt-related transcription factor 2 (Runx2), a key osteogenic transcription factor that is crucial for calcification of vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMC). Using mice with SMC-specific deletio...

Arterial stiffness is established as an independent predictor of cardiovascular morbidity and mortality. The objective was to prospectively evaluate association of aortic calcification burden with progression of arterial stiffness in population-based samples of healthy middle-aged men from ERA JUMP cohort (Electron-Beam Computed Tomography and Risk Factor Assessment in Japanese and US Men in th...

Matrix Gla protein (MGP) is a crucial inhibitor of vessel and cartilage calcification. We investigated the association of T-138C MGP promoter polymorphism with the degree of atherosclerosis, vascular calcification and patients' clinical background including calcification of the trachea and costal cartilage. Analysis of 108 autopsy cases was carried out by polymorphism-specific PCR on formalin-f...

Arterial calcification is a complex and independently regulated process with risk factors similar to those for atherosclerotic occlusive disease. It may develop either within the atherosclerotic intima or in the media. When calcification is found in coronary or lower extremity arteries, it is an independent predictor of cardiovascular events and lower extremity amputation. Recent evidence sugge...

The effect of alkali (Sodium Bicarbonate) on metastatic calcification produced by Hypervitammosis D (ergocalciferol) was studied in rats. Six organs e.g. kidneys, heart, lungs, stomach, aorta and liver of the rats were examined for evidence of calcification. Six out of ten rats receiving vitamin D alone and seven out of ten rats receiving vitamin D and sodiumbicarbonate in combination, showed c...

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...