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Updated: Jun 1, 2026

Calcification of Vascular Smooth Muscle Cells and Imaging of Aortic Calcification and Inflammation
Published on: May 31, 2016
Thematic series on the pathobiology of vascular calcification: an introduction
Dwight A Towler1, Linda L Demer
1Department of Medicine, Division of Endocrinology, Washington University in St Louis, St Louis, MO 63110, USA. dtowler@im.wustl.edu
Abstract:
Vascular calcification increasingly afflicts our aging, dysmetabolic population. Once considered only a passive process of dead and dying cells, data from multiple laboratories worldwide have converged to demonstrate that vascular calcification is a highly regulated form of biomineralization. The goal of this thematic review series is to highlight what is known concerning the biological "players" and "game rules" with respect to vascular mineral metabolism. Armed with this understanding, it is hoped that novel therapeutic strategies can be crafted to prevent and treat vascular calcium accrual, to the benefit of our patients afflicted with arteriosclerotic valvular and vascular diseases.
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