Once thought to result from passive precipitation of calcium and phosphate, it now appears that vascular calcification is a consequence of tightly regulated processes that culminate in organized extracellular matrix deposition by osteoblast-like cells. These cells may be derived from stem cells (circulating or within the vessel wall) or differentiation of existing cells, such as smooth muscle c...

Vascular calcification is a risk factor that predicts adverse cardiovascular complications of several diseases including atherosclerosis. Reduced dietary potassium intake has been linked to cardiovascular diseases such as hypertension and incidental stroke, although the underlying molecular mechanisms remain largely unknown. Using the ApoE-deficient mouse model, we demonstrated for the first ti...

In cases of vascular calcification, the expression of tropoelastin is down-regulated, which most likely decreases elastic fiber formation. However, the function of tropoelastin in vascular calcification remains unknown. We investigated whether tropoelastin affects the induction of vascular calcification. Calcification was induced using inorganic phosphate in cultured bovine aortic smooth muscle...

Vascular calcification is common in chronic kidney disease and associated with increased morbidity and mortality. Its mechanism is multifactorial and incompletely understood. Patients with chronic kidney disease are at risk for vascular calcification because of multiple risk factors that induce vascular smooth muscle cells to change into a chondrocyte or osteoblast-like cell; high total body bu...

Nephrogenic systemic fibrosis (NSF) is a systemic fibrosing disorder characterized by the development of large indurated plaques on the skin, primarily in patients with end-stage renal disease (ESRD). Skin biopsy reveals an increased frequency of CD34(+) and Factor XIIa+ cells. Microscopic calcification has been reported in the skin biopsies of rare cases of NSF. The etiology and significance o...

AIM to look for differences in clinical characteristics, and differences in the role of mineral metabolism disorders and inflammation in diabetic and non diabetic patients. METHODS subjects were 127 patients on maintenance haemodialysis: 46 with DM and 81 without. Vascular calcification of the aortic arch and peripheral artery were recorded qualitatively using x-ray of the chest and lower ext...

Cellular and molecular similarities between orthotopic versus heterotopic mineral deposition are beginning to emerge. During bone formation, the major orthotopic venue, two general mechanisms drive tissue mineralization1 (Table). With endochondral ossification, an avascular cartilaginous skeletal template is first established by chondrocytes; this cartilage template calcifies and is subsequentl...

BACKGROUND Vascular calcification was previously considered as an advanced phase of atherosclerosis; however, recent studies have indicated that such calcification can appear in different situations. Nevertheless, there has been a lack of mechanistic insight to explain the difference. For example, the roles of nuclear factor-κB, a major regulator of inflammation, in vascular calcification are p...

In chronic kidney disease, hyperphosphatemia has been associated to vascular calcifications. Moreover, the rate and progression of vascular calcification have been related with the reduction of bone mass and osteoporotic fractures, hereby suggesting a strong link between vascular calcification and bone loss. Our aim was to prospectively study the effects of high phosphorus diet on bone mass, va...

Vascular calcification is associated with significant cardiovascular morbidity and mortality, and has been demonstrated as an actively regulated process resembling bone formation. Oxidized low density lipoprotein (Ox-LDL) has been identified as a regulatory factor involved in calcification of vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs). Additionally, over-expression of recombinant human neutral sphing...