Arteriosclerosis News and Research RSS Feed - Arteriosclerosis News and Research

Arteriosclerosis is a general term describing any hardening (and loss of elasticity) of medium or large arteries.

Low levels of vitamin D associated with higher risk of heart attack and early death

New research from the University of Copenhagen and Copenhagen University Hospital shows that low levels of vitamin D are associated with a markedly higher risk of heart attack and early death. The study involved more than 10,000 Danes and has been published in the well-reputed American journal Arteriosclerosis, Thrombosis and Vascular Biology. [More]
Vitamin D supplements have unintended lipid consequences

Vitamin D supplements have unintended lipid consequences

Correcting vitamin D levels in individuals at risk for cardiovascular disease may have detrimental effects on their lipid profiles, report researchers. [More]
Study questions use of vitamin D supplements to improve cholesterol

Study questions use of vitamin D supplements to improve cholesterol

Vitamin D has been touted for its beneficial effects on a range of human systems, from enhancing bone health to reducing the risk of developing certain cancers. But it does not improve cholesterol levels, according to a new study conducted at The Rockefeller University Hospital. [More]

Renal denervation regenerates blood vessels and could reduce cardiovascular events

Renal denervation improves blood pressure and arterial stiffness in patients with therapy resistant hypertension, according to research presented at ESC Congress 2012 by Mr Klaas Franzen from the University Hospital of Schleswig-Holstein. [More]
Researchers discover new genetic disease related to vitamin B12 deficiency

Researchers discover new genetic disease related to vitamin B12 deficiency

Vitamin B12 is essential to human health. However, some people have inherited conditions that leave them unable to process vitamin B12. As a result they are prone to serious health problems, including developmental delay, psychosis, stroke and dementia. An international research team recently discovered a new genetic disease related to vitamin B12 deficiency by identifying a gene that is vital to the transport of vitamin into the cells of the body. [More]
Gene therapy applied to peripheral arterial disease

Gene therapy applied to peripheral arterial disease

Hepatocyte growth factor gene therapy could be used to treat patients with severe peripheral arterial disease, suggest results of a phase I clinical trial. [More]
Blood typifies coronary risk

Blood typifies coronary risk

Individuals with an A, B, or AB blood type have a significantly higher risk for coronary heart disease than those with an O blood type, say experts. [More]
Miriam researchers encourage physicians to inquire about ED symptoms in young, middle-aged men

Miriam researchers encourage physicians to inquire about ED symptoms in young, middle-aged men

Although erectile dysfunction (ED) has been shown to be an early warning sign for heart disease, some physicians - and patients - still think of it as just as a natural part of "old age." But now an international team of researchers, led by physicians at The Miriam Hospital, say it's time to expand ED symptom screening to include younger and middle-aged men. [More]
Kawasaki Disease may increase risk of atherosclerosis in children

Kawasaki Disease may increase risk of atherosclerosis in children

Cedars-Sinai researchers have linked Kawasaki Disease, a serious childhood illness that causes inflammation of blood vessels throughout the body, with early-onset and accelerated atherosclerosis, a leading cause of heart disease in adults. [More]
Alnylam first quarter revenues decrease to $20.6 million

Alnylam first quarter revenues decrease to $20.6 million

Alnylam Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a leading RNAi therapeutics company, today reported its consolidated financial results for the first quarter 2012, and company highlights. [More]

Perivascular fat tissue may influence onset of atherosclerosis

Researchers at UC have confirmed that fat surrounding the outside of arteries in humans-particularly the left coronary artery-may influence the onset of coronary artery disease, or atherosclerosis, which is the leading cause of death in the U.S. [More]
Positive results from Alnylam’s ALN-PCS Phase I trial on severe hypercholesterolemia

Positive results from Alnylam’s ALN-PCS Phase I trial on severe hypercholesterolemia

Alnylam Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a leading RNAi therapeutics company, announced today positive results from its Phase I clinical trial of ALN-PCS, an RNAi therapeutic targeting PCSK9 for the treatment of severe hypercholesterolemia. [More]
Depression may increase risk of peripheral artery disease

Depression may increase risk of peripheral artery disease

Depression may be associated with an increased risk of arterial narrowing in the legs and pelvis, a condition known as peripheral artery disease (PAD), according to research presented at the American Heart Association's Arteriosclerosis, Thrombosis and Vascular Biology 2012 Scientific Sessions in Chicago. [More]
HDAC9 gene can lead to obesity-induced body fat dysfunction

HDAC9 gene can lead to obesity-induced body fat dysfunction

Cardiac researchers at the University of Cincinnati (UC) have found that a certain cellular pathway is linked to obesity-related disorders, like diabetes, heart disease and fatty liver disease. [More]
Hyperinsulinemia itself not a cause of atherosclerosis

Hyperinsulinemia itself not a cause of atherosclerosis

A number of studies have shown that excess insulin circulating in the bloodstream is a major independent risk factor for cardiovascular disease. However, a new study from Joslin Diabetes Center finds that this condition, called hyperinsulinemia, is itself not a cause of atherosclerosis. [More]

SuperFAK protein decreases damage from heart attack by 50%

Researchers from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill reduced damage from a heart attack by 50 percent by enhancing a protective protein found in mice and humans. [More]
Direct link between short telomere length, heart attack and early death

Direct link between short telomere length, heart attack and early death

Every cell in the body has chromosomes with so-called telomeres, which are shortened over time and also through lifestyle choices such as smoking and obesity. Researchers have long speculated that the shortening of telomeres increases the risk of heart attack and early death. Now a large-scale population study in Denmark involving nearly 20,000 people shows that there is in fact a direct link, and has also given physicians a future way to test the actual cellular health of a person. [More]

Researchers use 3-D imaging to identify proteins involved in arterial stiffness

Human arteries - some smaller than a strand of hair - stiffen as a person ages. This stiffening is a factor in cardiovascular disease, the leading cause of death in the United States, because it contributes to the circulatory complications in disorders such as high blood pressure and diabetes. University of Missouri researchers have now used advanced 3-D microscopic imaging technology to identify and monitor the proteins involved in this stiffening process. [More]

Itamar, Roche to further develop EndoPAT technology for pre-clinical trials

Itamar-Medical, the world's leader of non-invasive devices for diagnosis of cardiovascular health, announced achievement of the next milestone of the international pharmaceutical company, Roche, to further develop the EndoPAT technology for pre-clinical trials. [More]
Researchers decode and characterize DNA repair mechanism

Researchers decode and characterize DNA repair mechanism

Oxidative stress is the cause of many serious diseases such as cancer, Alzheimer's, arteriosclerosis and diabetes. It occurs when the body is exposed to excessive amounts of electrically charged, aggressive oxygen compounds. These are normally produced during breathing and other metabolic processes, but also in the case of ongoing stress, exposure to UV light or X-rays. If the oxidative stress is too high, it overwhelms the body's natural defences. The aggressive oxygen compounds destroy genetic material, resulting in what are referred to as harmful 8-oxo-guanine base mutations in the DNA. [More]