Faculty Collaboration Database

Regulation of the human coronary microcirculation. J Mol Cell Cardiol 2012 Apr;52(4):814-21

Date

10/29/2011

Pubmed ID

22033434

Pubmed Central ID

PMC3306504

DOI

10.1016/j.yjmcc.2011.10.003

Scopus ID

2-s2.0-84858297384 (requires institutional sign-in at Scopus site)   45 Citations

Abstract

Atherosclerosis of conduit epicardial arteries is the principal culprit behind the complications of coronary heart disease, but a growing body of literature indicates that the coronary microcirculation also contributes substantially to the pathophysiology of cardiovascular disease. An understanding of mechanisms regulating microvascular function in humans is an essential foundation for understanding the role in disease, especially since these regulatory mechanisms vary substantially across species and vascular beds. In fact all subjects whose coronary tissue was used in the studies described have medical conditions that warrant cardiac surgery, thus relevance to the normal human must be inferential and is based on tissue from subjects without known arteriosclerotic disease. This review will focus on recent advances in the physiological and pathological mechanisms of coronary microcirculatory control, describing a robust plasticity in maintaining endothelial control over dilation, including mechanisms that are most relevant to the human heart. This article is part of a Special Issue entitled "Coronary Blood Flow".

Author List

Beyer AM, Gutterman DD

Author

Andreas M. Beyer PhD Associate Professor in the Medicine department at Medical College of Wisconsin

MESH terms used to index this publication - Major topics in bold

Coronary Circulation
Endothelium, Vascular
Humans
Microcirculation
Vasodilation