Related Experiment Videos
An association between mineral metabolism and the renin-aldosterone system in human hypertension
1Department of Internal Medicine, Uppsala University, Sweden.
Insights
Essential hypertension may involve calcium metabolism disruptions. This study found serum magnesium and urinary calcium/cAMP correlate with renin-aldosterone markers, suggesting a link in hypertension.
Area of Science:
- Nephrology
- Endocrinology
- Cardiovascular Medicine
Background:
- Abnormalities in calcium metabolism are increasingly recognized in human hypertension.
- The interplay between calcium homeostasis and the renin-aldosterone system in hypertension requires further elucidation.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the relationships between key indices of calcium metabolism and the renin-aldosterone system in untreated essential hypertension.
- To determine if alterations in calcium balance are associated with the activity of the renin-aldosterone system in hypertensive individuals.
Main Methods:
- Study included 39 subjects with untreated essential hypertension.
- Measurements included plasma ionized calcium, parathyroid hormone, 1,25(OH)2-vitamin D, serum magnesium, plasma renin activity (PRA), and urinary aldosterone.
- 24-hour urinary excretion of calcium and cyclic AMP (cAMP) were also assessed.
Main Results:
- No significant associations were found between major calcium determinants (ionized calcium, PTH, 1,25(OH)2-vitamin D) and the renin-aldosterone system.
- Serum magnesium showed a positive correlation with plasma renin activity (PRA).
- Both 24-hour urinary calcium and cAMP excretion were positively correlated with PRA and urinary aldosterone.
Conclusions:
- The renin-aldosterone system does not appear to significantly influence major determinants of calcium balance in human hypertension.
- A 'urinary leak' of calcium may be influenced by the activity of the renin-aldosterone system in essential hypertension.
- Serum magnesium and urinary calcium/cAMP warrant further investigation in the context of hypertension and mineralocorticoid activity.
Abstract:
In recent years abnormalities of calcium metabolism have been described in human hypertension. In this study, the relationships between indices of calcium metabolism and the renin-aldosterone system were studied in 39 subjects with untreated essential hypertension. No significant associations were found between the major determinants of calcium metabolism (plasma ionised calcium, parathyroid hormone and 1,25(OH)2-vitamin D) and the renin-aldosterone system. Serum magnesium was, however, positively correlated to plasma renin activity (PRA) (r = 0.38, P less than 0.05) while both 24 h urinary excretion of calcium and cAMP were found to be correlated to both PRA and urinary aldosterone in a positive way (r = 0.39-0.42, P less than 0.01 and r = 0.33-0.57, P less than 0.01, respectively). In this study there was no other evidence of any major influence of the renin-aldosterone status on the calcium balance in human hypertension. The urinary leak of calcium might be determined by the action of the renin-aldosterone system.