TISSUE REMODELING OF SMOOTH MUSCLE CELLS IN PULMONARY BLOOD VESSELS

这个子项目是许多研究子项目中的一个 由NIH/NCRR资助的中心赠款提供的资源。子项目和 研究者（PI）可能从另一个NIH来源获得了主要资金， 因此可以在其他CRISP条目中表示。所列机构为 研究中心，而研究中心不一定是研究者所在的机构。 肺动脉高压困扰着生活在高海拔地区的人，以及患有肺部和心脏疾病的人。根据美国国家慢性病预防和健康促进中心的一项调查，1995年至1998年期间，美国有570，461例肺动脉高压住院患者。高血压对疾病进展的影响与肺血管的组织重塑有关。广泛的文献检索表明，许多仍然未知的组织重塑的血管。我们的初步工作（参考文献）1-5)已经有了一个开始，但还有很多工作要做，特别是在血管平滑肌细胞上。本课题主要研究肺血管平滑肌细胞的超微结构，了解细胞及细胞成分（如细胞形状、细胞取向、细胞数量、肌动蛋白丝、微管、细胞核等）对血压和血流变化的反应，并试图找出肺动脉、肺小动脉、肺静脉和肺绒毛的超微结构差异。本研究将有助于我们了解高血压肺血管平滑肌细胞组织重构的机制。

This subproject is one of many research subprojects utilizing the resources provided by a Center grant funded by NIH/NCRR. The subproject and investigator (PI) may have received primary funding from another NIH source, and thus could be represented in other CRISP entries. The institution listed is for the Center, which is not necessarily the institution for the investigator. Pulmonary hypertension afflicts people living in high altitude, and people with lung and heart diseases. According to a survey by National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, there were 570,461 patients hospitalized with pulmonary hypertension between 1995 and 1998 in the USA. The effects of hypertension on the progress of the disease are associated with tissue remodeling of the pulmonary blood vessels. Extensive literature search showed that much remains unknown about the tissue remodeling of blood vessels. Our preliminary work (refs. 1-5) made a beginning, but much more needs to be done, especially on the vascular smooth muscle cells. In this project, we focus on the ultrastructure of smooth muscle cells in pulmonary blood vessels, try to understand how the cell and cellular components (such as cell shape, cell orientation, cell number, actin filaments, microtubules, nucleus, etc) respond to the changes of blood pressure and blood flow, and try to find out the ultrastructural differences among pulmonary artery, arteriole, vein, and velune. Our study will help us understand the mechanism of tissue remodeling of smooth muscle cells in pulmonary blood vessels due to hypertension.