[Procoagulant activity and hypofibrinolysis in metabolic syndrome]

Atherosclerosis and cardiovascular diseases(CVD) are complex pathological processes involving many genes and their products in complicated interactions with environmental factors such as life-style changes. Recent advances in integrated molecular physiology have convincingly shown that increased coagulation, decreased fibrinolysis and inflammation integrate with each other under pathological conditions and contribute to CVD in metabolic syndrome. Thus, human responses to rapidly changing Westernization of Japanese life-styles can provide enormous damages that result in CVD. By intervening these processes we can modify the course of CVD. Vigorous research activities to implement therapeutic means and to improve preventive measures are needed to successfully interrupt pathogenetic processes such as vascular remodeling and thrombus formation without interrupting physiological defense activities such as wound healing and hemostasis.