Endothelium as an endocrine organ: in health and disease

Bhatt, Janardan (2000) Endothelium as an endocrine organ: in health and disease. Journal of Applied Basic Medical Sciences, 2 (2). pp. 26-28. ISSN ISSN 0972-4729

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Abstract

Endothelium was initially thought to be a smooth inert non- thrombogenic lining of the blood vessel. For last two decades, it has been found that vascular endothelium does not merely provide a smooth lining between blood and vessel-wall but it is metabolically very active. It is also found that endothelium produces a large variety of substances which regulate vascular tone, structure & integrity of blood vessels and also affect the growth and metabolism of surrounding tissue. Total mass of endothelium in a healthy adult man of 70 kg. weight is about 1800 gms-2000gms & considered as the largest endocrine organ (paracrine) of the body. The endothelium produces physiologically active biochemical substances which affect the blood vessels and other tissues & play significant role in health and disease. The substances that cause predominantly vasodilatation are (1) Nitric oxide previously called Endothelial derived relaxing factor (EDRF) (2) Prostacycline (PGI2) (3) Endothelial derived hyper- polarizing factor (EDHF).The substances that cause predominantly vasoconstriction are (1) Endothelin-1, (2) Angiotensin -11 (A-1I), (3) Thromboxane- A2 (TXA2 ), (4) Free radicals- super oxide O2. Normally, there is delicate balance between vasodilatory and vasoconstricting substances and help to regulate vascular tone of blood vessel. Researches have already demonstrated morphological and functional alteration in endothelium in many diseases i.e. hypertension, atherosclerosis and there is new therapeutic potential to correct this endothelial alteration by various means and correction of various disease processes

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