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High prevalence of ACE DD genotype among north Indian end stage renal disease patients

BACKGROUND: The Renin-Angiotensin system (RAS) is a key regulator of both blood pressure and kidney functions and their interaction. In such a situation, genetic variability in the genes of different components of RAS is likely to contribute for its heterogeneous association in the renal disease patients. Angiotensin converting enzyme-1 (ACE-1) is an important component of RAS which determines the vasoactive peptide Angiotensin-II. METHODS: In the present study, we have investigated 127 ESRD patients and 150 normal healthy controls from north India to deduce the association between ACE gene polymorphism and ESRD. The inclusion criteria for patients included a constantly elevated serum creatinine level above normal range (ranging from 3.4 to 15.8) and further the patients were recommended for renal transplantation. A total of 150 normal healthy controls were also genotyped for ACE I/D polymorphism. The criterion of defining control sample as normal was totally based on the absence of any kidney disease determined from the serum creatinin level. Genotyping of ACE I/D were assayed by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) based DNA amplification using specific flanking primers Based on the method described elsewhere. RESULTS: The difference of DD and II genotypes was found highly significant among the two groups (p = 0.025; OR = 3.524; 95%CI = 1.54-8.07). The combined genotype DD v/s ID+II comparison validated that DD genotype is a high risk genotype for ESRD (p = 0.001; OR = 5.74; 95%CI limit = 3.4-8.5). However, no correlation was obtained for different biochemical parameters of lipid profile and renal function among DD and non DD genotype. Interestingly, ~87% of the DD ESRD patients were found hypertensive in comparison to the 65% patients of non DD genotype CONCLUSION: Based on these observations we conclude that ACE DD genotype implicate a strong possible role in the hypertensive state and in renal damage among north Indians. The study will help in predetermining the timing, type and doses of anti-hypertensive therapy for ESRD patients

Human Interventions to Characterize Novel Relationships Between the Renin–Angiotensin–Aldosterone System and Parathyroid Hormone

Observational studies in primary hyperaldosteronism (PA) suggest a positive relationship between aldosterone and parathyroid hormone (PTH); however, interventions to better characterize the physiologic relationship between the renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system (RAAS) and PTH are needed. We evaluated the effect of individual RAAS components on PTH using 4 interventions in humans without PA. PTH was measured before and after: Study 1) low-dose angiotensin II [AngII] infusion (1 ng/kg/min) and captopril administration (25 mg × 1); Study 2) high-dose AngII infusion (3 ng/kg/min); Study 3) blinded crossover randomization to aldosterone infusion (0.7 µg/kg/hr) and vehicle; and Study 4) blinded randomization to spironolactone (50mg/daily) or placebo for 6 weeks. Infusion of AngII at 1 ng/kg/min acutely increased aldosterone (+148%) and PTH (+10.3%), while AngII at 3 ng/kg/min induced larger incremental changes in aldosterone (+241%) and PTH (+36%) (P<0.01). Captopril acutely decreased aldosterone (−12%) and PTH (−9.7%) (P<0.01). In contrast, aldosterone infusion robustly raised serum aldosterone (+892%) without modifying PTH. However, spironolactone therapy over 6 weeks modestly lowered PTH when compared to placebo (P<0.05). In vitro studies revealed the presence of AngII type I and mineralocorticoid receptor mRNA and protein expression in normal and adenomatous human parathyroid tissues. We observed novel pleiotropic relationships between RAAS components and the regulation of PTH in individuals without PA: the acute modulation of PTH by the RAAS appears to be mediated by AngII, whereas the long-term influence of the RAAS on PTH may involve aldosterone. Future studies to evaluate the impact of RAAS inhibitors in treating PTH-mediated disorders are warranted