Posted on 04/06/2017 10:06:58 AM PDT by Red Badger
Investigators at the Ted Rogers Centre for Heart Research have discovered a surprising new role for tumor necrosis factor (TNF): namely, that it is a major regulator of small blood vessel function, the key determinant of blood pressure. The study is published online today in Nature Communications.
TNF has long been tied to inflammation, giving rise to the use of anti-TNF medications for chronic inflammatory diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis, psoriasis and IBS. Now, after years of studying TNF's cell signaling functions in the vascular system, researchers found that TNF directly impacts how the smallest arteries constrict - and thus profoundly influences blood pressure.
"This new role for TNF re-brands the traditional cytokine and firmly places it as a central regulator of microvascular myogenic responsiveness, one of the most important known regulatory mechanisms in the cardiovascular system," said Jeff Kroetsch, lead author of the study.
This is the first study to suggest that TNF may help regulate blood pressure. Kroetsch and his colleagues demonstrate that TNF uses a known, but unconventional mechanism, to regulate blood vessel constriction. Instead of activating a conventional "forward signal" through TNF receptors, TNF in the vascular wall initiates a "reverse signal" that directly travels into the contractile smooth muscle cells. This study is the first to demonstrate that such a reverse signal regulates a key physiological process outside of the immune system. This new function for vascular TNF holds true across several species, including humans, suggesting that this mechanism has been conserved through evolution.
Impact on those with inflammatory disease
While an early study, this work suggests that anti-inflammatory drugs targeting TNF could have negative side effects on blood pressure control - a danger that escalates for anyone with a cardiac condition such as heart failure.
"This new role for TNF underlines the need for caution when administering anti-TNF therapeutics, as they could lead to unpredictable blood pressure responses and increase cardiovascular stress," said Steffen-Sebastian Bolz, a Ted Rogers Centre principal investigator, University of Toronto professor of physiology, and Kroetsch's supervisor.
"We suggest that patients taking anti-TNF therapies be continuously monitored and treatment terminated if blood pressure disturbances are observed," Bolz added.
Kroetsch and collaborators found that in small resistance arteries, TNF acts as "mechanosensor" that senses changes in blood pressure. TNF then conducts biochemical signals that affect how the arteries constrict. They observed that TNF controls blood pressure and that drugs that interfere with TNF signaling can dramatically reduce blood pressure.
The ramifications of this research may stretch into other systems in the body.
"Since TNF is expressed in virtually all cells, and they are all sensitive to mechanical forces, this discovery potentially applies to tissues and cell types well beyond the cardiovascular system," Kroetsch said. "Future research may yield insight into other vital processes in the body that are influenced by TNF."
Explore further: Why do we develop high blood pressure?
More information: Jeffrey T. Kroetsch et al, Constitutive smooth muscle tumour necrosis factor regulates microvascular myogenic responsiveness and systemic blood pressure, Nature Communications (2017). DOI: 10.1038/ncomms14805
Journal reference: Nature Communications
That was an eye popper for me too. Lost credibility after that.
But considering treatment with Enbrel which affects TNF. Got a smart Doc, he will know the answer!
“There are safer, more effective natural remedies for literally everything.”
If you say trying to live a healthy lifestyle (good diet, don’t smoke, exercise regularly, etc.) is a natural remedy I would agree with you.
If you are talking about over the counter supplements I would disagree. I have been in the natural products industry for almost 20 years and I can tell you that these products are only good if you are already healthy. For instance if your BP is 180/120 nothing over the counter will work until you get your BP down to an acceptable level.
My husband, as well. They just call it essential hypertension. CoQ10 helps, as well as splitting his BP meds in half and taking the 2nd half later in the day.
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I am simply saying that there is a cure/remedy using natural (not commercial in most cases) substances without undesirable side effects in every case.
This is a well proven fact.
We never had any need to seek cures in allopathy.
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