Coral reef metabolism underpins ecosystem function and is defined by the processes of photosynthesis, respiration, calcification, calcium carbonate dissolution. However, relationships between these physiological at organismal level their interactions with light remain unclear. We examined metabolic rates across a range photosynthesising calcifiers in Caribbean: scleractinian corals Acropora cer...

Ocean acidification (OA) poses a major threat to calcifying organisms such as reef-building corals, typically leading reduced calcification rates. Mechanisms compensate the effects of OA on coral growth may, however, involve processes other than calcification. Yet, physiological patterns mediating under are not fully understood, despite an extensive body literature characterizing changes in cor...

In this review, the aim is to discuss pathological development of vascular calcification including a brief description arterial wall structure and function, atherosclerosis, highlighting normal physiological with particular emphasis on their common characteristics, critically review recent findings implicating role smooth muscle cells in pathogenesis process microRNAs regulation these phenotype...

V ascular calcification, once considered a passive consequence of aging, is now recognized to be a highly regulated process akin to bone formation. Vascular calcification is prevalent across ethnicities and age groups, and observational studies show an interaction with aging in asymptomatic adults and in individuals with established coronary artery disease. Recent findings from the HORUS study ...

Ocean acidification caused by anthropogenic uptake of CO₂ is perceived to be a major threat to calcifying organisms. Cold-water corals were thought to be strongly affected by a decrease in ocean pH due to their abundance in deep and cold waters which, in contrast to tropical coral reef waters, will soon become corrosive to calcium carbonate. Calcification rates of two Mediterranean cold-water c...

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES Vascular calcification is associated with increased cardiovascular mortality in chronic hemodialysis patients. This prospective study investigated the relationship between serum osteoprotegerin, receptor activator of NF-κB ligand, inflammatory markers, and progression of coronary artery calcification score. DESIGN, SETTING, PARTICIPANTS, & MEASUREMENTS Seventy-eight ...

Vascular calcification commonly associated with several pathologies and it has been suggested to be similar to bone mineralization. The axis RANKL-OPG (receptor activator of nuclear factor B ligand–osteoprotegerin) finely controls bone turnover. RANKL has been suggested to increase vascular calcification, but direct evidence is missing. Thus, in the present work, we assess the effect of RANKL i...

RATIONALE Intimal calcification is highly correlated with atherosclerotic plaque burden, but the underlying mechanism is poorly understood. We recently reported that cartilage oligomeric matrix protein (COMP), a component of vascular extracellular matrix, is an endogenous inhibitor of vascular smooth muscle cell calcification. OBJECTIVE To investigate whether COMP affects atherosclerotic calc...

Calcification of the middle cerebral artery (MCA) is uncommon in the healthy elderly. Whether calcification of the MCA is associated with cerebral ischemic stroke remains undetermined. We intended to investigate the association using Agatston calcium scoring of the MCA. This study retrospectively included 354 subjects with ischemic stroke in the MCA territory and 1518 control subjects who under...

AIMS Calcification is an independent predictor of mortality in aortic valve (AV) stenosis. Echocardiographic calibrated integrated backscatter (cIB) is a promising parameter for quantifying AV calcification. However, the ability of cIB to differentiate between calcification and valvular thickening has been questioned. Therefore, we aimed to use cIB to study AV calcification compared with non-ca...